Cats TNR and Rescue shopping day a success

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Published on Tuesday, May 17, 2016

Submitted photos. A variety of vendors had tables set up at the Yellowhead Hall for the Cats TNR shopping day.

By Kira Paterson

Neepawa Banner/Neepawa Press

On Saturday, April 30, the Cats TNR & Rescue organization held their second annual Mother’s Day Shopping Expo at the Yellowhead Hall. The event is a fundraiser to help pay for the veterinary bills for the cats the group rescues. 

Vendors paid for a table at the event, with the money going directly to Cats TNR. There was also a small admission fee for shoppers and a barbecue lunch for sale that supported the organization. Some of the vendors also donated a portion of their sales that day.

Linda Desjardins, one of the founders of the Neepawa organization, said that this year went a lot better than the first. “We’re pretty happy with the response,” she noted. She added that last year they didn’t have as many people come as they would’ve hoped because very few even knew about the event. But this year, she said they did a lot more advertising, which helped get the word out. 

Last year, Desjardins said they raised about $3,000 and they were hoping to either match or surpass that number this year. 

She said that the vendors are always so generous and it’s good to see a strong turnout to reward the vendors for helping with their cause. 

Over the three years Cats TNR & Rescue has been running, they have rescued over 200 cats, with most of those getting adopted and some being vetted and released. Right now, they have 16 cats in foster homes, waiting to be adopted permanently. 

Shannon Boersma and Diane Tilley helped out at the barbecue, grilling burgers and hot dogs to sell.