October 23, 2017 - Our Northside Pet Connection (NPC) president, Tom Grave, passed away from chronic health issues recently. Tom was a very kind, generous and affable man who deeply cared for the welfare of animals. He would build housing and feed feral cats in his local area. I remember that Tom and his wife, Kara Middlebrooks, took in a litter of feral kittens as their own because the mother of the kittens had died.
Tom and Kara have supported the NPC and its mission since the fall of 2013. They joined as board members at a time when the future of the NPC was in trouble because there were not enough members interested in participating on the board. Each month, they would drive from Merced to Coulterville for board meetings. Under their guidance, the NPC went from distributing 6 spay and neuter vouchers a month to over 35 per month.
Over the time of Tom’s illness, I have served as acting NPC president. I was recently promoted to president by the board.
The board and I are sadden by Tom’s passing. However, we will continue to serve the NPC in the same spirit that he and Kara had - we will make decisions based on what is best for the animals of the community and those that care for them.
The Northside Pet Connection’s main mission is to assist in the spay and neuter of cats and dogs throughout our area. We do this by providing spay and neuter vouchers that greatly reduces the cost to pet owners. The towns we serve include: Groveland, Big Oak Flats, Coulterville, La Grange, Don Pedro and adjacent communities. In September, we distributed 44 spay and neuter vouchers and 6 medical vouchers. All vet clinics do accept these vouchers which substantially reduced the cost the spay and neuter.
Please call (209) 732-6194 to request vouchers. For Spanish speakers, please call (209) 852-9440. When making a request, please provide your name, phone number, mailing address and how many vouchers are needed. Messages are checked once per week. If you are interested in becoming a member and volunteering to assist the NPC in its mission, please call (209) 878-3860.
Thank you for caring about your animals and the welfare of animals in general.
