It has always been a dream of Shelley (Wester) Schlenk and the volunteers of Open Your Heart Cat Rescue, to build a shelter with an open cat room to better the lives of felines in need while they await their forever homes.

On Saturday, April 19, 2008, Open Your Heart took action to make that dream a reality when they donated $50,000 to the Friends of Somerset Regional Animal Shelter to aid in the creation of a cage-free cat room.

“It gives us great pride and joy to see all of our hard work come to fruition”, said Debbie Sproul, long time volunteer and treasurer of the group, which has been in existence since the 1990’s. “Open Your Heart has always been at the forefront of animal welfare since its inception.  The establishment of a cage-free cat room at the site of the new shelter ensures that our mission to save lives will continue and for this we are grateful”, says Rose Tropeano-Digilio, Vice President of Open Your Heart. 

Kathy Healey, FOSRAS president and OYH board member says, "it is with the collective effort both organizatons and their supporters that our vision of a larger animal shelter will come true.  And for that we thank everyone for their past and continued support."

The new Somerset Regional Animal Shelter is slated to open in 2009.

Thank you, Open Your Heart!

So, think you could  never volunteer at a shelter?
Think Again!

Animal Companion