Wednesday, October 01, 2008

An Amazing Lady!

I managed to contact the cat rescue recommended by my new vet and I met this amazing lady yesterday, she runs the charity called 'Cats in Care'. (according to there newsletter they are in there 30th year and having looked at the registered Charity site to see how the finances are, I found out very little!)

She lives in this bungalow down a long track and I knew I was in the right place as there where cats in all the windows. She invited me in for a coffee in a way, you knew she wanted company. I had dressed accordingly and was led through a door to an enormous pen attached to the back of the house. There where beds and cats everywhere, this enclosure is so the cats don't bother the neighbours. This was her home and she kept apologising for the state of it.

In the kitchen, there where beds ontop of fridges, worktops and a plank of wood over the cooker with a cat asleep on it, what had I let myself in for. The smell was unpleasant, but bearing in mind how many cats she had (34) not overpowering and clean!

We went through to the 'lounge' and it was then I realsied she had no heating only a 'parkray'? Is that the one you light which heats your water? No TV, only a small radio. More beds with cats, along the top of bookshelves, on chairs on bean bags, again the smell was there but not unpleasant.

So we sat and chatted and before I knew it 3 hours had passed :shock: she is a well educated lady who wanted to know about my family, my girls, was exceptionally interested in T and thrilled that K was at Uni. and so it went on.

Anyway to cut a long story short at some point in the conversation I mentioned my father was a Master Mariner, so was hers. She asked which company he worked for 'Ellerman City Liners' I said, her chin dropped, so did hers! Her's was actually the commodore!

She mentioned that all her family where buried at Blackhorse Hill Cemetary, which was 5 mins walk from my home and my junior and senior school, in fact the one school I went to was .................... wait for it.........................
Blackhorse Hill School!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

She lived and was raised in Wallasey which is about a 20 min drive from where we lived and where I learnt to drive!!

Now I believe these sort of meetings, with so many connections don't just happen, there is a reason.

If I lived closer I would definately volunteer as I am a cat person and love cats. But I want to find out more, and there AGM is in October so I may go along.

In all the research I did, I found one thing they lack, a website! There is no information about them on the web at all, apart from the charities website and then again thats not uptodate!

In my days as playgroup chairperson, I did that for 5 years, I was a mean fundraiser! But before I consider this I want lots more info!!

What do you think friends, coincidence or what??

3 comments:

Yolanda Elizabet Heuzen said...

Libby what a wonderful story and no, I don't believe in coincidences, this is something that needed to happen.

I think it would be a good idea to attend the AGM this month and then see where it leads you. I agree you need more info before you do anything else.

I hope it all works out because it looks like they need a good fundraiser. :-)

Auntie Noo said...

oooh I love a bit of serendipity

Cheryl said...

How lovely Libby....I love those sort of people....my sort of people....doing something worth while......

Not a coincidence.....you have got to follow this up.....