About Us
OUR MISSION
Blueberry Heaven Sanctuary is a non-profit organization with a central focus to provide permanent sanctuary to senior, special needs and at-risk community cats; we're also passionate about educating the public on the importance of compassionately reducing the feline
overpopulation and supporting the volunteers who feed and care for them.
We are proud to partner with several local rescues, including Orange County Animal Services, in our objective to fulfill the needs of our community cats, and through education and outreach we advance our mission one cat at a time.
FOUNDERS
----Peder Hagglund ----
UCF professor
Professional horse pooper scooper
UCF professor
Professional horse pooper scooper
AND
---Michaela Fazecas ---
UCF professor
Professional litter box scooper
UCF professor
Professional litter box scooper
As part of running a sanctuary, the biggest daily chore is to collect last night’s “dinner” – we do it with love, and a lot of humor. And we know the animals greatly appreciate it.
Our love for animals and their welfare goes back to our early childhood, and establishing this organization is a dream come true as we get to contribute in a meaningful way to the welfare and well being of our companion animals.
BHS was established in July, 2023 – but our love and care for animals goes back decades.
OUR PLANS
Short-term plan:
Build the Cattery, where we will be able to permanently house cats considered non-adoptable, special needs and/or seniors who need a safe, loving forever home.
Build the Cattery, where we will be able to permanently house cats considered non-adoptable, special needs and/or seniors who need a safe, loving forever home.
Medium-term goals:
Engage the local community to fundraise and educate the public on the importance of spay/neuter, the key to reducing and eliminating the overpopulation of community cats, who far too often suffer and die alone, something that is 100% preventable.
Engage the local community to fundraise and educate the public on the importance of spay/neuter, the key to reducing and eliminating the overpopulation of community cats, who far too often suffer and die alone, something that is 100% preventable.
Long-term goals:
Engage local elected officials to ensure funding for the organization and partner rescues, as well as promote much greater enforcement of existing animal welfare laws, and change/add new laws and ordinances targeting animal neglect, abuse and overpopulation of animal companions.
Engage local elected officials to ensure funding for the organization and partner rescues, as well as promote much greater enforcement of existing animal welfare laws, and change/add new laws and ordinances targeting animal neglect, abuse and overpopulation of animal companions.
Feline overpopulation is a problem that affects the entire community and it takes an entire community to solve it - did you know that in Orange County alone there are estimated to be over 90,000 community cats? That's just Orange County!
This means, 90,000 cats are out there fending for themselves, scrounging for food, and frequently suffer and die alone.
90,000 cats who, through no fault of their own, live on the streets, in junk yards, in people's back yards, and often, after a short and miserable existence, meet a sad end.
The sad existence of our community cats is completely preventable, and our ultimate goal is to engage the community and end this suffering once and for all.
The Meaning of Our Logo
Once upon a time, there lived a bunny and a cat…Legolas was a Manx, a beautiful cat with smoky gray fur and white markings. He needed an expensive surgery, and sadly, as too many people do when they get animal companions, they never factored in the cost for any special care. And, like too many people, instead of doing the responsible thing, they simply set him lose to fend for himself. Fortunately, he quickly ended up in our care, where he did get the surgery he needed, and where he became my dad’s cat. You see, Manx cats are very special in many ways, and one thing about them is that they most often will choose their person. And my dad was the lucky one.
A few years later, when I was volunteering at a local wildlife center, someone dumped a little bunny at the sanctuary’s gate. It was June. A couple of months after Easter. You can imagine where this story is going…the little bunny was an Easter “gift” who soon became a burden and discarded unceremoniously at the wildlife center. I brought her home, and Legolas took an immediate liking to Buffy the Cat Slayer. The two would chase each other in the garden and snuggle together on the couch watching TV – mostly the Animal Planet channel.
Buffy’s time with us was cut short by kidney failure a couple of years later. But boy was her presence felt in our home. She would put all the cats in their place, and her favorite pastime was to dig tunnels in the garden – which she later would cover back up, only to start over again the next day. She was a beautiful soul who was larger than life.
Legolas went on to grace our lives to the very respectable old age of 21. He crossed the Rainbow Bridge peacefully in March 2018. But he left a giant paw print on my dad’s heart.
Our Board Members
Linda Brentzel
Polly Barhite
Patty Bradstreet
Maggy Tomova