The Kindness Of Strangers Saves Orphaned Long Branch Cats

LONG BRANCH, NJ - All five of Jimmy Rimo's cats are no longer homeless.

For years, Jimmy Rimo made it his mission take care of the stray cats of Long Branch. He fed them. He loved them. He had some of them neutered and even took five of them into his home after their outside neighborhood became uninhabitable. He was their savior.

But Jimmy Rimo died in an accident on Nov. 23 when his car went off a bulkhead and landed in Manhassett Creek. He tried to swim back to shore, but didn't make it.

That left his five cats without a home. But there's good news.

Ruth Rapkin of the Eatontown-based MEOW Inc. said thanks to a Patch article about the cats' plight, three of them have been adopted and two now have foster homes.

"After three weeks of begging family and friends, the cats have been saved by the kindness of strangers," Ripkin said. "We are still looking for a permanent home for two, but they are all in a better place than an empty home."

The cats were "scared, confused and grieving" over the loss of the only human who they trusted. The middle-aged cats faced a grim future - either a shelter, where they would probably be euthanized, or a short life out in the cold.

"I got calls the very first night the article was online," she said.

If you are interested in giving the one or both of the cats currently in a foster home a forever home, please contact MEOW Inc. at 732-241-4913 or message them on Facebook.

"They promise to be no trouble and aren't asking for much, just a safe haven to live out their remaining years," she has said. "But you can offer them life. I promise if you open your heart to these cats and accept them for who they are , they will come to love you as they loved Jimmy and you will come to love them."

Rescue efforts are being coordinate through MEOW Inc. For info please call 732-241-4913 or message them on Facebook.
Photos: Courtesy of MEOW Inc.