Volunteer Spotlight: Mary Wakely
Mary started working the Thursday evening shift at the Halfway House in February of 2020 with an awesome crew who has been together for ages. She also picks up the Tuesday voicemails and is on the auction committee.
Mary started working the Thursday evening shift at the Halfway House in February of 2020 with an awesome crew who has been together for ages. She also picks up the Tuesday voicemails and is on the auction committee.
“We adopted Butter and Chevy (formerly Batter) in December of 2022,” says Mira. “We both grew up with lots of kitties and having moved out on our own, we only had one kitty, Turbo, who was a bottle baby I had rescued.
I have been with Furry Friends for 5 years. I had looked online for volunteer opportunities when I got close to full retirement and Furry Friends looked like a good fit. Although I had been volunteering at the Humane Society, I wanted to focus more on cats.
“After we lost our cat Pearl, I wasn’t sure if I was ready for another pet,” explains Kathy. “Plus, we still had two other cats, Tiny and Bean, and Lucy, my daughter’s cat, since my daughter had moved back home.
After Joshua and his wife Kelli began fostering for Furry Friends two years ago, they quickly got involved with the Halfway House. Joshua then signed up to be a permanent sub, but soon found himself as a regular full-time shift volunteer for two hours on Wednesday nights.
“Willow, formerly called Korn, is the first kitty we’ve had since having children,” Theresa explains. “Initially, we were interested in meeting his brother Karmel, but because he had already been adopted by another family, we decided to meet Willow instead.
“Dopey and Artemis (formerly Sneezy) were not our first cats,” admits Kristy. “In fact, they brought our current house total to six. They came from a litter of seven, named after the seven dwarfs, and we loved them immediately.
I began with Furry Friends once I got my driver’s license at the start of 2021 during the pandemic. Since school and every other activity had been cancelled, I was looking for something to get me out of the house. Volunteering at a cat shelter seemed like the perfect option.
“I have been an animal lover since I was a child. When I moved out on my own, I adopted my first rescue at a shelter in Dickinson, ND. Since then, I have rescued three cats. Each one has been immensely spoiled with love. Some have even gone on hikes with me in the Black Hills of SD.
“Andrew and I have never had a cat together, but we grew up around them at our family’s homes,” Myriah explains.
Amy has volunteered at Furry Friends since October 2022. The retired RN had seen a story about us on the news and knew that she wanted to help. She used to volunteer every Wednesday and Friday but had to stop once the school year started since she’s currently a substitute teacher.
I have been a volunteer for two years. I learned about Furry Friends in 2016 from a neighbor who was fostering kittens for you, and knew that I wanted to volunteer as soon as I retired from my full time job in Portland.
“Having had numerous cats before, when I saw first saw Frodo, I got ‘this feeling,’ and those are the animals we adopt,” Robyn explains.
Wow what a great and challenging year Furry Friends has had! I will share our many amazing accomplishments in 2023 in this letter. First, I would like to send out a very heartfelt THANK YOU to all our supporters, volunteers, sponsors, and donors! Together with our Board of Directors, Leadership, Staff, and YOU, we have made a difference in so many lives and in many cases, we have saved lives! Give yourself the credit you deserve!
What an amazing year 2023 has been for Furry Friends! We have faced many challenges—and many successes– throughout the year, but the one thing that has always shined through is our commitment to the cats in our care.
“When we adopted Jack (formerly Zion),” Shannon says, “he came into a home with three other cats, making his introduction to them gradual but smooth.
“Genie’s my second cat,” Ella explains, “re-named after Genie from ‘Aladdin.’
Margarita began volunteering with Furry Friends in July 2023. Before that, she had supported us through monthly donations for about a year.
Roberta had volunteered with the Best Friends Animal Rescue in Utah when her family lived there. But after moving to Washington in March 2020 (just as the pandemic broke), she looked around for a local organization. Since Furry Friends was listed on the Best Friends website as a companion organization, she promptly checked us out — and here she is!
Rosie came to us as a tiny kitten in early April. Right away we could tell something wasn’t right about one of her hips. Her leg just dangled and she dragged it along when she walked. We thought maybe it was dislocated.
“I adopted Babs a few months after my first kitty Newt died of lymphoma,” Erika explains.
Heather, who has been volunteering with us since December of 2022 not only helps at the spay/neuter clinic but fosters countless kitties as well. Prior to joining Furry Friends, she had been actively involved for many years with spaying and neutering other adoptable kittens and cats.
James, who has now been volunteering with Furry Friends for a year, got involved when both of his cats sadly passed away within months of each other. Uncertain as to whether or not he was ready for any new cats, he missed that special cat energy and became a volunteer instead.
“Sadie came to Furry Friends in poor shape with four other kitties from a neglectful situation. Once Furry Friends gave her the medical attention she needed, she became one of the ‘Kitchen’ cats at the Halfway House. She remained there for several months and seemed to have learned her name, so when we took her home, we didn’t change it.