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An easy and unique way to ring in your birthday and help shelter cats is by hosting a fundraiser on Facebook.
If your profile lists your birthday, Facebook will probably prompt you as it approaches to set up a fundraiser. You get to choose which cause or non-profit organization you want to support. When you select Cat Care Society, Facebook will automatically create a post for your friends to donate to. We recommend tailoring the automatic post language to something more personal that shares why you chose us and your connection to the society. It’s your day, and you get to boast about why you love cats so much! Then, select how long you’d like the fundraiser to run and your donation goal, and you’re off to the races. Your connections will be able to donate directly through Facebook, with no additional processing fees. At the end, we get a nice deposit in our bank account thanks to you!
The best part is it takes so little time to put together that you can set up your fundraiser and still have time leftover to plan that sweet birthday bash at the roller rink (or the party place of your choosing).
(Need help or have more questions? Visit this Facebook help center article.)
Once your fundraiser is live, Facebook will notify us, but we’d love if you reached out and told us about it, too! Email our director of philanthropy at aleader@catcaresociety.org so we can watch your party in action.
“As my birthday was approaching this year, I decided to host a fundraiser for a cause close to my heart,” Brenda Johnson, a Cat Care Society donor and volunteer who recently hosted her own fundraiser, said. “Since I volunteer with Cat Care Society, the decision was easy. I knew that this way, my friends could donate funds to a great organization I love that helps support cats in need. Creating the fundraiser was super easy and made me feel good. I set a goal of $200, and was able to successfully raise $170 from multiple friends who donated directly through Facebook. Now, I can rest easy that Cat Care Society gets a check and knowing that the process was easy and accessible for everyone.”
Not on Facebook? No problem! There are so many other ways you can help the cats. Consider hosting a supply drive, sending financial or physical donations or spending part of your day giving scritches to the kitties.
By Michaela Sullivan, CCS board member
I’ve been a huge fan of the Cat Care Society ever since I visited for the first time almost a decade ago. CCS has been one of my favorite places to donate to. I don’t know of a single shelter that comes close to providing the level of comfort and care for homeless cats that CCS does.
I work in finance and am very passionate about tax planning because I know what a huge difference it can make for someone’s bottom line. I have found that my favorite way to donate to CCS is through my Donor-Advised Fund (DAF). But what is DAF, anyway?
A DAF is an investment account for charitable giving. I can donate cash, appreciated stock and even illiquid investments in some cases. I don’t have to pay taxes on the gains for anything I contribute and receive an immediate charitable deduction.
I can select how I want my DAF invested and make grants to charities any time (now or into the future). Being able to take control of when I get my deductions has been crucial to optimizing my tax situation while supporting the organizations I care about the most. With the standard deduction now being so large, many people are bundling multiple years of donations into their DAF in one year while switching off between itemizing and taking the standard deduction. This is extremely helpful from a tax standpoint because if they did smaller donations each year instead, they may not even be getting a tax benefit at all.
I recently had a client sell their business, which resulted in millions of dollars in capital gains. They were able to make a substantial contribution to their DAF (estimating it would be enough to fund their donations for the next 10-15 years) and they were able to cut their tax bill by about $40k. Not only that, but they donated appreciated stock with over a 2,000% gain that they did not have to pay taxes on.
A donor advised fund can certainly be a great tool for tax planning, but that isn’t the only thing I love about it. It is also extremely easy to give and track because the financial institution holding the DAF does all the administration. When I want to donate, I can do it in a matter of minutes by logging into my account and searching for the organization I want to donate to. The organization will receive a check and a letter from my DAF. I can customize the letter by adding a note for where I want the funds allocated. The financial institution tracks everything for me. I can see information about my DAF contributions as well as my grants to charities and even when the checks were cashed.
I am so happy I have such an easy and tax-efficient way to give to my favorite cause, CATS!
Interested in expanding your philanthropic giving by setting up your own DAF? Contact our director of philanthropy at aleader@catcaresociety.org for help or connect with your financial institution or tax advisor! And, find more ways to give on our website.
With Halloween approaching, it’s the perfect time to spotlight a particular type of cat—and no, we’re not talking about black cats! Instead, we’re focusing on tri-color cats, whose coats feature a mix of black, orange, and white in varying patterns and ratios. While “tri-color” and “calico” are often used interchangeably, calico cats have a distinct coat pattern. Tortoiseshell cats are also considered tri-color, even though they usually lack white and have their own unique pattern. It’s important to remember that “calico” and “tortoiseshell” refer to coat patterns, not breeds. These color combinations are the result of genetics and can appear in any breed, though they are more commonly found in breeds like American Shorthair, British Shorthair, Japanese Bobtail, Maine Coon, and Persian.
There are also diluted and tabby variations of tortoiseshell and calico cats—so many colorful kitties to love! In the rest of this article, we’ll explore the different markings and patterns that define each type of tri-color coat. By the end, you’ll be able to recognize the unique beauty of every tri-color cat you encounter.
Tri-color cats are almost always female, with approximately one in 3,000 being male. This is because two X chromosomes are needed to have a distinctive tri-color coat. Typically, if a cat has an XX pair, she will be female. Male cats have an XY chromosome pair, so they’re not tri-color unless they have at least one extra chromosome (XXY). Unfortunately, these males often suffer from Klinefelter’s Syndrome, a condition that can negatively affect their health and longevity.
Calico cat coats feature patches of solid orange, black, and white. The white color is a result of a genetic condition called piebalding, which occurs in a range of other domestic and farm animals. In a diluted calico, the colors are more muted to cream, gray, and white, due to a gene inherited from one of the parents that diminishes color intensity.
“Tabico” is a term for cats that have a combination of tabby and calico markings. These cats have large patches of orange and black on a white background, with tabby stripes overlaying some of the black and orange areas. When tabby stripes cover the forehead, they form the distinctive “tabby M.” A diluted tabico’s coat features cream, gray, and white fur.
Tortoiseshell, or “tortie,” cats have brindle patterns (irregular stripes or streaks) of orange and black with little to no white. A diluted tortie has gray and cream colors and is a result of both parents carrying a recessive gene that impacts the intensity of the colors.
A torbie cat exhibits both the multi-colored brindle pattern of a tortoiseshell cat and the characteristic stripes or spots of a tabby. Like the tabico, if there are tabby stripes on the cat’s forehead, they will display the “tabby M.” Diluted torbies usually have a cream, gray and white coat.
A “tortico” is a combination of classic tortie and calico markings, featuring large patches of orange and black brindling on a white background. A diluted tortico is relatively rare, and will be gray and cream, and white.
As you can see, there are many variations of tri-color cats but you can still count yourself lucky if you run into one! In many cultures tri-color cats are connected with good luck and good fortune, and in the U.S., they are sometimes called “money cats.”
People who have tri-color cats often report that they’re equally sweet and sassy and tortoiseshell cat owners often refer to their feisty side as having “tortitude.” However, since tri-color cats aren’t a breed, research hasn’t been able to confirm that this extra feistiness is a distinct trait related to their coat pattern. That said, if you haven’t taken our “Whats Your Cat Purrsonality” quiz on our Just Fur Fun page, now’s your chance! Discover which cat breed or color pattern best represents you—maybe even find out if you have a bit of tortitude!”
About the Author: Beth Dokolasa is a volunteer for Cat Care Society and serves on the Board of Directors. She is an instructional developer for Natural Grocers and lives in Indian Hills, Colo., with her husband, daughter, and two cats, Techno and Digit.
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The Cat Care Society is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization. Our tax identification number is 84-0869447.
