Manage the Requests for Shelters:  This can all be done from a home computer.  It involves receiving, recording, and approving requests from colony caretakers, for shelters we build; corresponding with those who make the requests; then emailing the THS to advise them who will be picking up the shelters.

Seek Donations from Manufacturers:   While Scepter Corporation donates a skid of bins to us each year, there are other manufacturers ie Reflectix etc who could also be approached to donate materials to us.

OTHER WAYS YOU CAN HELP US BUILD WINTER SHELTERS FOR FERAL CATS   

activities.

Write Grant Proposals:  Major companies, such as big box stores where we buy supplies to build shelters,

all have donation policies.  We need to study these policies and learn how we can create opportunities to

receive these donations.  This may include writing grant proposals (where policies require this approach).

Seek out Student Volunteers:  High school students are required to perform a number of hours of community

service each year.  We need to devise a strategy to encourage teachers to steer students toward our shelter-

building as a source for their community service hours.

Find Sources for Styrofoam Boxes:  Styrofoam boxes used by pharmaceutical companies, pet shops,

seafood distributors, and seafood restaurants can be adapted for use as shelters.  We need to identify and

contact potential sources for these boxes, determine how many they can offer on a weekly or bi-weekly basis, and learn where and when we could pick them up.  We'll also need volunteer drivers to pick them up and deliver them to 11 River Street.   

Examine our Methods and Materials:  While we do our best and work our hardest, there are no doubt better/more creative ways to build shelters.  There may be better and/or cheaper materials we can use. There may be sources for used or surplus materials or imperfect products that can't be sold, but we can use.  We need people to cast a critical eye on our methods and materials and make recommendations for improvements.

Seek out Sponsors from the Business Community:  While we provide homes for feral cats, the real estate and home-building industries do the same for humans.  We need to reach out to this business sector and seek assistance.

Look into Solar Swimming Pool Blankets:  These are useful to cover and contain heat within the feral cat shelters.  We need volunteers to look into the availability and cost of solar blankets, determine where and by whom they are manufactured, consider alternatives to solar blankets, and consider where we might obtain used solar blankets and/or factory seconds.

KELLY, from a colony near Downsview Park, stays toasty in a shelter our volunteers built!