Ask high school counselors to see whether kids can get extra-credit (maybe that's an old-school term) to serve as volunteers...

Hello, Can I ask exactly where the cat shelter is situated? Thanks!

It-s at 2 Chemin de Plantin, 1217 Meyrin. If you are interested pls send me a mesasge.

Cheers,

Cindy

Hi Cindy

I am a big cat lover myself but with my busy schedule I can barely find the time to go and help.  However I do have a suggestion

Why not start a SOS chat group in GLOCAL.  People are far more motivated when they request an invite and feel part of something special.  Humans tend to do things not purely out of altruism but more when they feel they belong to something.  Well at least thats what i think anyway.

I would not be surprised that you be overwhelmed with volounters then.

Just a thought

Kind regards

Thanks for the info! Sadly, that is too far for me to realistically travel to and from. Otherwise, I would have been interested. We had cats in the UK, and a bit of feline time would have been a pleasure. Good luck with volunteers!

IB students need service hours in order to complete the program so I would suggest tapping into the network of local international schools.

Do you only go there on weekends?

Dear all,

Thank you for your kind suggestions.

 Recently I have been receiving kind offers from students who are interested in doing some volunteer work at the shelter which would also help to full^fil their charity work obligation for their IB.

After a thorough discussion with the president, it has been agreed that students under age 18 who'd like to volunteer at the shelter must be accompanied  & supervised by a parent and must contact me for a mini-interview before coming for the first time.

This is due to the fact that:

1)  Although most cats at the shelter are friendly, there are always certain risks involved. Many cats in the shelter are under stress as some have been abandoned/ abused/ in fragile health condition. Their behaviours might vary when they see unfamiliar faces. Scratching, biting can certainly happen thus if students would like to come to do volunteer work, it would be down to their parents to ensure their safety.

2) a mini-interview is needed to identify if the student is familiar with small animals and to determine if he/she is suitable to do the tasks at the shelter. Volunteering at the shelter doesn't mean just petting the cats, it involves scooping a lot of cat litter, cleaning shelves, sweeping terraces, cleaning stains in cages and on walls, doing water vaccuming etc. We also have to establish a verbal agreement that the parent and the student will be responsible for themselves, just like all other adult volunteers.

Currently we have two teenage volunteers who come on the weekend to help out who are supervised by their parent. It's been very nice as they are efficient, kind-hearted and most importantly,what I am most happy about is to see these young volunteers, who would give up their free time to do something meaningful. I also have to applaud the parent who comes every weekend to accompany the students. By giving them a good example, the parent can spend some good quality time with his daughter, doing something that they both enjoy by helping us offer a cleaner accomdation to these homeless cats and, at the same time, gain credits for their charity work programme. A win-win situation. :)

sorry for the late reply... for me yes, I can go there on the weekends. But we need volunteers every day as the shelter has to be cleaned daily. Would you be interested in volunteering during the week? If so, can you let me know?

Thans!

Cindy