Hello, everyone, Mom Nora here borrowing the blog from the kitties to share some news, extend my apologies and offer advice.
In 2006 and 2007, the cats and I encouraged our friends and their beans to support an organization we had found called Cats With No Name. It was located in Pine Grove, PA. We were saving the weight circles from our Purina One to donate to the organization, who would then receive donations of food and/or cash from Purina.
At that time, there were several comments left by people from that area who accused the owner of Cats With No Name of misappropriation, abuse of animals, lying, etc. I did what research I could through Google. I found only accusations, no charges filed or convictions made. I emailed the owner, Virginia Kresge Justiniano, and offered her the opportunity to respond. I posted her response on our blog. I encouraged you to do your own research into any organizations you would choose to support, but I had decided that she seemed ok to me and I continued sending our Purina circles for a while, but stopped after a while, I think we had switched to another food for a while.
Today, while going through old posts and comments, I came across comments left on that post from earlier this summer. I only wish that the commenters had left their notes on one of our current posts so I could have made this post sooner.
Virginia Kresge Justiniano and her fiance Andy J. Oxenrider have been charged and convicted of multiple, multiple counts of animal cruelty and drug possession. There are news stories from 2009 and 2010 with details. You can find them by googling her name. I can't post them here, they're too horrible.
I can't tell you how sick I feel about all of this. My mind is reeling with questions that will never be answered about how this could happen, how she got away with these things for so long, and on and on.
My heart breaks for the kitties and other animals who were victims of her cruelty, as well as for the humans who turned their beloved animals over to her because they couldn't care for them any longer.
Please thoroughly research
any organization that you consider donating money or anything else to. Check with the Better Business Bureau, make sure they can offer a copy of an annual report or tax return, have 501(c)3 non-profit organization status and do anything else you can think of to make sure they are sparkly clean and honest. Don't give cash and make sure you get a receipt for any amount you donate.
I am so sorry that I encouraged my friends to support these awful people in any way. I hope you can forgive me. Most of all, I hope the kitties who truly have no names can forgive me.
Nora
