Pastor Larry Vandever, Coalition for Feral Cats of Lehigh Valley, PA
Pastor Larry Vandever, a former police officer turned pastor, joins Stacy to talk about his nonprofit, the Coalition for Feral Cats of Lehigh Valley (Pennsylvania). His group practices what Larry calls “TNMM-plus,” which means trap-neuter-maintain-monitor—plus they provide other services to their community. Larry feels that TNR is just the basics and that more is required to ensure a good quality of life for the cats being spayed/neutered. Colonies that are part of the Coalition’s program are fed twice a day by volunteers and are monitored by cameras every few weeks to ensure that the cats are safe from harassment and that there are no new cats, no injuries, and no predators around. Stacy and Larry talk about how the group operates, including their rigorous volunteer-training process. They also discuss other ways the group helps the community, including through spay/neuter assistance for owned cats. They discuss how Larry’s religious beliefs inform his work, and he tells Stacy that “We are supposed to be stewards of God’s creation, not abusers.” The Coalition for Feral Cats of Lehigh Valley is working on publishing an operations manual that will soon be available on their Facebook page, or by getting in touch with Larry. To learn more, email Pastor Larry directly, or visit the Coalition for Feral Cats of Lehigh Valley Facebook page. Their website is currently under construction.