Meet Rich! RASKC is honored to name Richard Bradley and his family as Outstanding New Volunteers. Since they began fostering in 2019, Rich, spouse Kathy, and son Beckett have contributed about 1,800 hours.

 “I’m 52 years old and live near Lake Meridian in Kent,” said Rich. “I enjoy hiking and video games. Sometimes we go camping, so my son and I can cook over an open fire.

“Kathy enjoys crafts and taking care of the foster kittens. She has a master’s degree in experimental psychology. Beckett is an eighth-grader who recently earned his second-degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do. Wedge, the papillon, is getting older and doesn’t recognize us sometimes, but that doesn’t stop young Moony from taking mid-day naps beside him. Abe, the older cat, disappears outside for hours and sometimes days at a time, then comes home and sleeps for a long time wherever he feels like it.

“My father was an army veteran. He died in 1973. My stepdad was a truck driver and part-time bluegrass musician. My mother is a polyglot. She speaks four languages fairly well and also made a living as a florist in Arkansas and Texas.

“I’m an Air Force retiree and have a few commendations and awards.  I averaged about one or two recognitions every other year. I have a job at the fulfillment center up the road from the RASKC building. I used to work there at the Boeing campus as a tester, then got a job with Amazon after they leased the property there. I like the commute and it’s the kind of work that lets me enjoy my retirement a little.

“I’ve volunteered with Habitat for Humanity, Northwest Harvest and Special Olympics here in Washington, and several other organizations throughout the United States.

“It’s fun fostering kittens for RASKC, and I like to imagine them going to loving homes after we return them. I love getting to know these animals and learning their different personalities. We took care of a hospice cat once. We gave her a little bit of a safe and happy feeling until she died. We also took care of a feral cat from RASKC. I couldn’t get comfortable thinking of him ending up in a loving home. I thought he might end up a barn cat, so I went back and adopted him. We’re giving him a whole lot of that safe and happy feeling now.”

Thank you, Rich and family, for all of the safety and happiness that you provide to so many foster animals!