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June
2009 |
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Dear Friends:
I hope this
letter finds you all in good health and enjoying this weird summer!
We had lots
of ups and downs weather wise. You also probably have had too much cold, hot, rain,
dry, and to top it all off; starting June 21st the days have been
getting shorter already!
But then,
it could be much worse, we could have no weather at all, and what would we
complain about then? The mosquitoes and black flies, I guess. Poor
creatures, even they have to wear fur coats one day and bikinis the next up
here. I feel just about as bedraggled as the way this poor cat on top in the
picture looks, in the middle of her “relatives”, the meerkats, well, a
housecat is not exactly a member of the mongoose family, so what exactly is
she doing between those creatures?
J
But before
I am losing my hair over that, I would like to share something else very
strange from one of our supporters, Dorothy and Woody Watkins, with you:
The Storm
They were together in the
House.
Just the two of them.
It was a cold, dark,
stormy night.
The storm had come quickly
and each time the thunder boomed he watched her jump.
She looked across the room
and admired his strong appearance…
And wished that he would
take her in his arms, comfort her and protect her from the storm.
Suddenly, with a pop, the
power went out… She screamed…
He raced to the sofa where
she was cowering.
He didn’t hesitate to pull
her into his arms.
He knew this was a forbidden union and expected
her to pull back. |
He was surprised when
she didn’t resist, but instead clung to him.
The storm raged on…
They KNEW it was wrong
Their
families would never understand!
So
consumed were they in their fear that they heard no opening of doors…
Just
the faint click of a camera…The flash….
The conclusion
to this story
I hope I could make you smile!
A big
surprise came in the form of a package full of jewelry from my
“eBay-friend” Lynn Frischman out of California: She inherited jewelry
from her mom and an aunt, and having the same feelings towards jewelry
as I do (none) she mailed it to me in hope that I can sell it for the
Shelter. Ted is looking into having it appraised. I also found a jewelry
store up here which normally buys gold, but may be interested in the
pieces too- (most of the jewelry are pearls, stones, silver) and if they
don’t give us anything close to the appraisal figures, I will bring it
along to the fundraiser. Meaning there would be lots of interesting
things to buy for the lady of your heart, you guys! A big THANKS YOU
to Lynn! |
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Great Shelter news: A couple of months ago we placed Rex, a mixed
breed dog, who had been with us for many years. Our volunteer Karen
received the following mail a few days ago:
Hi,
Karen.
I
just wanted to let you know that Rex is doing wonderful. He is such a
good dog. He is loving and sweet and fun. We love him so much. He is
such a snuggler! Please pass onto the shelter that he is doing well
and is really happy and loving.
take
care,
Michele Littlefield
Another happy ending!
Last
month a lady from another animal shelter got in touch with us, asking if
we could help with the placement of a horribly abused six month old pit
bull girl. The poor dog was covered with cigarette burns. I got in touch
with Susanna, who runs “Dogs Deserve Better” out of the southern part in
Maine. Susanna found a perfect foster home for “Jasmine” and it seems
that Jasmine is still young enough to be able to handle the trauma she
went through. She plays with the couple’s children and other animals,
she shows no signs of aggression, and she is getting over her fear of
the husband in that family. So a big THANK YOU to Susanna, for saving
this little girl!
It
looks like Charley’s Strays is well respected. There have been several
other animal rescues in touch with us lately, asking for our help when
they are filled to the top. At least this way some of those poor
throwaway animals have a chance of not being put to sleep.
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The
downside though: most of the dogs we take in from these shelters have no
vaccinations and are not spayed/neutered, so this is adding a big extra
burden on our shoulders. So once again I am pulling my hair out - I
really don’t know anymore how to get our huge vet bill under control. I
am making monthly payments, but instead of the bill going down, it’s
going up, and up, and up. Normally at this point I would be asking you
for help, but in these bad economic times I know you are struggling to
make ends meet yourself. And most of you are already out on a limb by
sending us donations. All I can do is hope for someone to win the
Megabucks and share just a little bit with our animals.
We have dates for Cindy’ Houston’s yard sale
and our fundraiser:
The
yard sale will be, weather permitting, on
September 12th in Woburn, Massachusetts. Small items are
still needed! Remember- the money Cindy will make from selling the fleas
will go towards the heating bill, which will be probably enormous again-
seeing the prices of oil are climbing, once again!
No
matter what the weather God has in store for the fundraiser – we will be
at the Woburn Baptist Church again this year, on
October 17th, also to try to raise
money for the fuel bill. You will find three tickets included in this
letter, each for the usual $5.00, and you can either buy them, have a
friend buy them, or just throw them away. There will be the “usual”
$300.00 first prize, and lots of other prizes. And at the fundraiser
itself we will have many items for sale; I just received a large box of
hand knitted baby clothes and children sweaters, from my friend in
Germany. She has been knitting and crocheting all winter long, every
day, for our fundraiser. Of course there will be refreshments, home
baked cakes and pastries, and all we need is YOU to come and have a good
time with us. (Maybe even do your Christmas shopping at our many
tables). |
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CAT REPORT – June 2009
As of this writing all
our cats are still with us and seemingly happy, after some rearranging
upstairs. It was Agnes’s fault this time; she decided to be mean to the
two surviving funny-foots. She’s been terrorizing Lisa every now and
then, and this month she took a scunner to Pooh. They’re both very sweet
and inoffensive and don’t fight back when Agnes glares and darts at
them; Lisa curls up and growls, and Pooh runs and hides. I had no way
to segregate Agnes, so I moved Pooh and Lisa from the back room into the
front of the house, which comprises upstairs and downstairs halls, the
bathroom and my bedroom. I brought their favorite bed, which they still
share; Lisa’s mostly there or in a corner of the upstairs hall, but
Pooh’s been bravely exploring, upstairs and down (yes, funny-foot cats
can manage stairs very nicely, even when they haven’t had practice). My
own Woodstock, who also lives in that part of the house, ignores them
but helps himself to their food. All three eat canned food including
senior, and all three can have dry food available without getting fat,
so the arrangement is convenient for me and lets Lisa and Pooh eat at
their leisure. |
Speaking of cats with
foot problems who get around nicely, you should see Oswald go! Even in
this rainy weather he spends a lot of time on the porch, and frequently
I watch him tear full speed from the far end of the porch into the house
and leap onto a chair or windowsill, just because he’s so full of
energy.
The mist, drizzle and
downpours haven’t deterred the birds or the woodchuck family that lives
in the back field, so Oswald and his companions have interesting things
to watch. I get frustrated at night; a bunch of them will gather with
noses against the screen peering intently into the dark, and of course I
can’t see a darned thing – don’t know whether there’s another cat or a
skunk or something out there, or whether they’re just kidding me.
Many thanks, as always,
to the cats’ friends and to all of you who help us out. I was pleased
to get a big batch of coupons from Jennie Bering as I was putting this
report into final shape. Teresa and her family bring us coupons, too,
and Olivia Charles sent several bags of canned food.
As I’m sure you know,
the economy is posing problems for everyone who cares about
animals. Apparently the need to spay and neuter cats is greater than
ever, in spite of Maine’s low-cost program. A shelter down toward
Portland had over a hundred kittens earlier this spring, with people
even leaving baskets and boxes full outside the door when the place was
closed. I hope it makes you feel good to help care for surplus cats and
dogs, both strays and pets that people can no longer afford.
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Our mailing
address: |
| Charley’s
Strays |
| P. O. Box
64 |
| Limestone,
ME 04750 |
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We are in need of the following:
blankets, can food, dry food (please the plain looking types,
not the colored stuff (that usually gives the animals diarrhea}
paper towels, bleach, chewies, treats. What I need bad is STAMPS
to mail these newsletters. So hold up your local post office if
you think you can get away with it. Just don’t hurt them.
J
THANKS!
And a big
THANK YOU to the following people who helped us feed, cloth,
and med our 4-legged friends: |
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Barb & Jon Anderson,Aug.
Carole Parker, Stoughton
Carolle Popovich,
Strafford
Christel Friedow, Plymouth
Cindy Houston, Woburn
Cristine Cardello, Melrose
Dale Critchley. S.Weymouth
Diane Rizzo, Oxford
Donna Bering, Lynn
Doris Lary, Hartland
Dorothy Eckstein, Medford
Dorothy Watkins, Amesbury
Dorothy D’Alessandro,
Ossipe
Elizabeth Fay, Northport
Enid Hayes, Halifax
Florence Mason, Lexington
G.R.Welch, Stonington |
Inge Maiellano,
Marblehead
Iris Martinello,
Tewksbury
Irma Simon, S. China
Jean Catignani, Conway
Jennie Bering, Lynn
Joe D’Alessandro,
Tuftonboro
Joseph Blake, New Bedford
Judy & Al Smith, Belmont
Judy Rohweder, Northport
Lisa D’Alessandro,
Raymond
Laureen Alden, Stoughton
Linda Merriam, Dresden
Lorena & Harry Clark, Bev.
Marcia Smith, Bucksport
Marian Delarue, Woburn |
Marlene Kaplan, Melrose
Mary Klayda, Winchester
Mildred Walker, Presque Isle
Nancy Capone, Wakefield
Naomi Teixeira, Jay
Pat Thain, N. Billerica
R. D. Bournival, Nashua
Robert Hull, Lawrence
Sandra Nicholson, Beverly
Susan Borsic, Woburn
Viola McDonald, Woburn
Thank You!
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