At the May Homeward Pet 2023 Fur Ball Gala & Auction, Washington Federation Board Member, Chris Federlein. Chris was presented with the award as recognition to her commitment to bettering the lives of animals not only through her volunteer and donor activities at Homeward Pet, but through her individual passion to end cat overpopulation throughout Washington state.
Shelby Wade, Homeward Pet Adoption Center Volunteer Manager, shared:
“Chris has been an active volunteer for over 11 years and has done the volunteer reception role almost exclusively, weekly, working with the public and sharing her extensive knowledge, especially regarding cats and community cats. She is absolutely my “go to” and an inspiration with community cats. She has also provided support for offsite events, the Homeward Pet food bank (pick-ups and deliveries to and from community locations), and fostering.
Her continued support of the community through us and Community Cat Coalition is quite admirable.
She always keeps a cool head with situations at reception and is an exceptional representative of Homeward Pet.”
Chris began volunteering with a local cat shelter shortly after retirement and served a term on their Board of Directors where she led a team to review and update their bylaws, developed job descriptions for board positions, chaired a committee that managed one of their two major annual fund raisers, and worked with a CPA firm specializing in non-profit accounting to begin preparation for a formal audit. Chris then became involved with a group of local rescuers who wanted to start an organization to focus on helping free roaming cats in the community and helped launch the Community Cat Coalition in 2012.
In addition to Chris, the “Peggy Noll Heart of the Shelter Award” was presented to Mud Bay, Inc. for it’s support of Homeward Pet and animal welfare organizations throughout Western Washington.
The “Peggy Noll Heart of the Shelter Award” was launched in 2019 when it was presented to its namesake, Peggy Noll. Ms. Noll has had a significant presence at Homeward Pet for more than 31 years, serving as volunteer, board member, executive director, fundraiser and now, Community Engagement Director for Homeward Pet. Her tireless commitment to animal welfare and her passion to better the lives for all animals is why the award was created and named in her honor.
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