What's New

Catty Corner 2004 was a great success! Thanks to the hard work of many volunteers, we raised quite a few "cat dollars." ASAP supporters, volunteers and members of the community rely on our little store for holiday shopping for their cat-loving friends and relatives, and we were very pleased to provide a varied array of gifts this year. Many gifted volunteers and ASAP supporters donated handmade artistic creations and craft items: from boas to place mats to tote bags, jewelry, pottery, cat cards, paintings, photographs. Those items help make our store unique! Basil sends a big "THANK YOU" to the many volunteers, supporters and shoppers who helped make this year's Catty Corner PURRFECT! See you next year!   New Cat Visiting Rooms for ASAP!
	Late November brought workmen into ASAP to put in some of the final touches to the building. The Playroom was turned into two cat visiting areas, where potential adopters can meet and get to know the cats. Another new feature is the "Lost Cat" counter by the window. Still to come are two new cat condos.

 

Lemonade for Kitties
	At ages 4 and 7, Erin and Ellen are probably our youngest volunteers, although they are too young to volunteer in the ASAP shelter. So where do they volunteer? Well, on the street where they live! Yes, there's another pair of young entrepreneurs helping ASAP cats and kittens. Despite their young age, they both have had a long love of cats and would love to have just one! But as luck would have it, their father is very allergic to the furry beings. Because of this, the girls have resigned themselves to visits to ASAP for their "kitty fix," as many volunteers call it.
When the notion of operating a lemonade stand began to take shape last summer, Ellen immediately thought of "the kitty shelter" for the proceeds. After pouring many a glass of cool lemonade this past hot September, the girls counted their profits, and with smiles on their faces, headed for the ASAP shelter with a big donation. A warm thank you goes out to Erin and Ellen for their contribution to our community by supporting ASAP cats. We also want to thank Kelli and John, their parents, for teaching the value of serving our community through volunteerism. Erin and Ellen can hardly wait until they are 10 so they can volunteer in the shelter. ASAP can hardly wait to have them! A postscript to this story... Erin and Ellen came back to ASAP recently, with more than $63.00, which they had collected selling their toys at a moving sale, even toys which were dear to them. Thanks again, Erin and Ellen, you're terrific!
2nd Graders Come to Visit
Last April, a group of 2nd graders from Congregation B'nai B'rith's Religious School took a field trip to ASAP with their teachers, Mrs. Rosenbaum and Mrs. Shafritz, an ASAP volunteer. The children, their parents and siblings toured the facility and learned about what ASAP does. As part of their Tikkun Olam (Fixing the World)/charity project, the children brought cat toys they had made and then spent some time playing with the cats. A fun time was had by all the two-footed and four-footed participants!	Students show off cat toys they made
Pumpkin makes friends	Geoffrey laps up some attention
Sue Ellen and her fan	Rouge has an admirer
News-Press Makes a Difference
Santa Barbara News-Press owner Wendy McCaw came in to adopt a cat not long ago and was so impressed with what ASAP was doing that she decided to make ASAP one of the recipients of the News-Press's 2003 Holiday Fund Campaign! Reporter Morgan Green wrote a number of wonderful articles about ASAP: For a homebound woman, cat is just what doctor ordered ASAP president cares for wayward feline mothers Helping a cat land on her feet Feeding the need to help animals Lucky feline survives burning, looking for love and new home ASAP volunteers find diamond in the rough This great publicity helped increase the number of December cat adoptions. And of course, the cats already have plans for the donated money! Other recipients of funds raised by this effort are Visiting Nurse & Hospice Care of Santa Barbara, The Rehabilitation Institute at Santa Barbara, and the Foodbank of Santa Barbara County. Thanks, News-Press!