Meet the Webb family! With tremendous joy RASKC honors the Webb family- parents Darcy and Scott with son Spencer. They are among RASKC’s longest serving and most delightful volunteers. The Webb family has been fostering RASKC cats every year for at least 11 consecutive years. They also had volunteered on weekly shifts for several years when we maintained a cat-adoption program at Federal Way PetSmart. We are so glad that the Webb family is an integral part of RASKC’s feline pride.

Q: How did you hear about RASKC?

A: We adopted a cat at Federal Way’s PetSmart. When our son, Spencer, was about eight years old, we started looking for volunteering options. We stopped in at PetSmart again and signed up with King County’s animal shelter.

Q: What made you want to volunteer, especially to work with animals?

A: We felt that our son needed to learn the benefits of volunteering and community service. We are both lifelong animal lovers and thought it would be a good fit. People have more control over their situations, whereas animals at the shelter have no idea what is going on to them. We figured we could help those that had no “voice.” Volunteering together was also a great time for bonding and sharing experiences that didn’t include video games.

Q: What do you do when you aren’t volunteering at RASKC?

A: Spencer, now 19, is at Green River College. Darcy and I have our jobs and hobbies- traveling, hiking, kayaking, photography, and reading. And cats, of course.

Q: What do you hope to gain from your experience as volunteers with RASKC?

A: We gained three wonderful cats. Fostering is a great way for them to audition to live at our house. Of course, Scott would love to adopt almost every one of them if he could, but alas, Darcy points out that their forever home is out there and that it’s our job to get the kitties ready to go to the forever home. We learned that cats can have colds! You can’t win them all- some cats (we only foster cats) won’t survive illnesses, and some cats won’t be acclimated to life with humans, life in a house, or with other cats. We are really glad that RASKC has a Barn Cat Program. We learned that RASKC is a no-kill shelter. Our best discovery has been learning about all the great, dedicated staff at RASKC.

Q: What are the best things about your cats?

Their independence and total disregard for our existence. Just kidding. It is nice that we can travel for short durations while someone checks in on the kitties. We know they don’t need much to get by without us, though sometimes we get the stink eye when we get back. The best thing about them is their company. We’re a part of their pride, and they sometimes let us know it by purring in our laps and snuggling in bed.

Q: How would you describe your pets’ personalities?

They are all adorable and mostly incorrigible at the same time, as cats are prone to being. Our three perma-cats are welcoming to our fosters, which makes this possible.

• Sally: “What? Where’s the food?”
• Sagittarius: “Me, me, me, me, me”
• Sparky: “I’m cute and I know it!”

Foster kitty Georgie (or as we call her Judgie): “You humans aren’t worth my time and I will glare at you until you do my bidding. Come hither and feed me my special snack (with medication, but don’t tell her that) right now!” Georgie is actually beginning, after six weeks, to chill. She is allowing us to pick her up and pet her. She is beginning to play with our other cats – perhaps she is just feeling better from her meds. But she still judges us.

Q: Describe a memorable moment you’ve had with an animal.

A: We had a sweet kitty we adopted named Nikki. She got along with everyone- human and feline. We were fostering a cat who was her opposite: barn-cat worthy, mean and angry. He was always chasing and hissing at Nikki. One day it was pouring outside. We found Nikki at the window by the front door having conniption fit al la “Lassie.” I opened the door and that foster, who had snuck out, came running in, soaked to the skin. I’m pretty sure he didn’t treat Nikki any better after she rescued him from the rain when she didn’t have to.

Q: Fun facts?

A: When Spencer was 12 years old, he won an award for Grand Master Chicken Handler at the Lincoln County Fair. We don’t have chickens. Everything he learned about chickens he learned from his friend who loaned him one or from YouTube. Fake it ‘til you make it! Darcy works as the Director of Education at Sylvan Learning, and Apollo Ohno was a student there.

Q: What else would you like to say about volunteering for RASKC?

A: We highly recommend it. We thought we’d do it only for a few years, but we love it and don’t plan to stop. If you don’t do it for yourself, do it for those animals who are in bad situations that need just a little relief from the cages at the shelter when sick or who need a walk…

Interested in volunteering? We’d love to have you join our team! Simply sign up for New Volunteer Orientation to learn all the ways you can help make a difference!