Fluffy cat is a refugee from Mideast violence
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By Ron Pazola | Tuesday, January 23, 2007 |
(THE ASSOCIATED PRESS) Tom Chambers of Wheaton, Ill., adopted his cat, Stone, through the Best Friends Animal Society from a shelter that was destroyed in Beirut.
WHEATON, Ill. — It’s hard to think of Stone as a war casualty.
The year-old white Angora cat, more pillow than feline, jumped onto Tom Chambers’ dining room table and plopped himself down as though he owned the place.
Yet only a few months ago Stone, who is deaf and sports one blue eye and one green eye, was left homeless when his shelter was bombed in Beirut, Lebanon.
Chambers, a Wheaton resident, adopted Stone through the Best Friends Animal Society, the largest sanctuary for homeless animals in the United States.
Stone and other cats were part of an unprecedented airlift of almost 300 animals left abandoned or wounded in war-torn Beirut. The animals were flown to the Best Friends’ 1,200-acre sanctuary in Kanab, Utah. From there, the four-footed victims of war were on their way to finding new families.
That’s when Chambers entered the picture. Through the Internet, he learned what Best Friends was trying to do.
“I’m an animal lover, and it broke my heart when I realized what had happened to those cats and dogs in Beirut,” said Chambers, a director at HFBC Finance in Prospect Heights. “I told Best Friends I was interested in adopting a cat, and I described the type of cat I was looking for.”
Best Friends sent a representative to interview Chambers at his home and eventually Chambers agreed to adopt Stone.
Best Friends staff member Juliette Watt flew Stone in her private airplane to DuPage Airport in West Chicago, where Chambers picked up his newfound feline friend Nov. 26.
During Watt’s two-day trip that took her to seven airports, her cargo included a blind cat, a litter of kittens rescued together from Beirut and a group of feral cats destined for deluxe accommodations in a private barn.
“It feels good knowing you are doing something to help these animals,” Watt said.
Best Friends media manager Barbara Williamson explained how her organization got involved with saving animals from war-torn Lebanon.
“Best Friends already had a relationship with the only animal humane society in Beirut, and, as a grassroots group, we wanted to get involved in this project,” she said.
Stone adjusted quickly to Chambers’ house.
“Stone can be both standoffish and friendly,” Chambers said. “I can tell he spent time wandering the streets because cats are usually picky eaters, and Stone will eat just about anything I feed him.”
And Stone isn’t bothered by loud sounds, or any sounds, for that matter.
“It’s not unusual for Angora cats to be born deaf,” Chambers said. “My other pets run away when the vacuum cleaner is turned on, but Stone is totally oblivious to it.”
Chambers’ soft spot for animals didn’t start with Stone. When he lived in Delaware, he adopted a dog that had been hit by a car.
More recently, Chambers adopted a pug-beagle mix that has epilepsy, and he took in another dog that was a victim of Hurricane Katrina.
Chambers makes frequent financial donations to his favorite charities — the National Humane Society, the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and DuPage County Animal Control.
“People ask me why I care so much about animals when there are so many people in need,” Chambers said. “But animals need help, too. Dogs and cats are a lot of fun and they give you unconditional love.
“Besides, how can you not love an animal that looks as beautiful as Stone?”
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