••
14
COMMUNITY
TheMesaTribune.com |
THE MESA TRIBUNE | JULY 25, 2021
@EVTNow
/EVTNow
EV cat rescue confronting a �lood of felines BY ASHLYN ROBINETTE Tribune Staff Writer
P Getting ready for an adoption event July 31 at Gordy’s Goodies Pet Food & Supplies are, from left, Gordy’s owner Lisa Thayer, Kattered Tails CEO Monica Colello and Kattered Tails Intake Director Amber Gries. The three kittens they are holding are up for adoption. (Special to the Tribune)
et overpopulation has left animal shelters and rescues across the Valley at capacity or nearly full with pets needing homes. Kattered Tails, a Chandler foster homebased rescue, is at capacity and in desperate need of help with food and supplies for their 80 cats and kittens in care. “You get tired of telling everyone ‘sorry we’re full,’” said Monica Colello, CEO of Kattered Tails. With community support, Colello and her colleagues believe they can continue to �ight pet overpopulation and ensure that every homeless cat and kitten they foster �inds a forever home. “Community support is integral for us to continue to support the community,” the rescue stated on Nextdoor. “Without community support we will be forced to implement the full surrender fees when taking in cats and kittens. Car-
ing for these little families is not free. Support is needed.” Pet overpopulation in Maricopa County was once second nationally only to Los Angeles County, according to the Arizona Humane Society. Since then, more efforts have been made to save lives and Maricopa County Animal Care and Control reported a decline in overall animal intake numbers in recent years and a higher percentage of animals being adopted out or relocated after coming in through their doors. MCACC has maintained an average annual save rate of 94 percent or higher since 2017. Yet, the in�lux of homeless pets is still high. Animal shelters and rescues like Kattered Tails now have to turn away pets due to lack of space, fosters, supplies or money. Shelters being at capacity is normal for this time of the year, according to MCACC.
��� TAILS ���� 16
Mesa Fire helps woman celebrate 75th birthday BY TOM SCANLON Tribune Managing Editor
J
odi Gutirrez was thinking of hiring a male stripper dressed as a �ireman for her mother’s 75th birthday. Then, she came up with a better idea: Real �iremen! They didn’t strip, but members of the Mesa Fire Department stopped by to help Jodi and her family cheer “happy birthday!” to Kay LeBrun. Jodi’s parents, Joe and Kay LeBrun, were meant to be together. The Mesa couple were born on the same day in the same year – July 1, 1946, in the same Michigan hospital – Mercy Hospital in Bay City. The same doctor even brought them both into this world. A Tribune story from 2006, when they
were celebrating their 60th birthday, tells their shoulda-been-a-movie story: “The two met on a blind date when they were 15 years old. They both said it was truly amazing when they found out they shared a birthday. “Kay broke up with Joe six months later, and they didn’t talk again until �ive years later. But remember, they were meant to be together. “When Joe returned from the Navy, he saved up and bought a new red and white 1963 Corvette and thought about that girl Kay he used to go with. “‘I had been in the Navy long enough to know what wrong women were,’ said Joe, an electrician for Boeing. ‘Kay had the right schooling, came from a good family
��� BIRTHDAY ���� 15
Kay LeBrun is flanked by daughter Jodi Gutierrez, left, and Jennifer McEwen during LeBrun’s 75th birthday celebration. (Pablo Robles/Tribune Staff Photographer)
