Carrie's Hair Shave for Worthing Cat Welfare Trust

YES! I'm doing it again! I'm shaving my hair off for the FOURTH time!

In August 2013, I shaved my hair off raising money for Little Princess Trust & I donated my hair.

In October 2017 I also did a 1 mile charity swim, raising money for Spana.

In May 2020 I shaved my hair off raising money for NHS Charities Together.

In September 2022 I shaved my hair again in support of Mahsa Amini & to show my solidarity.

Now, I'll be shaving my hair off raising money for Worthing Cat Welfare Trust on the 26th April 2025!

I had two other ways I was hoping to raise money, but unfortunately due to how poor my health is at the moment, I have decided another hair shave is best.

Worthing Cat Welfare Trust are very special to me. On the 1st January 2019, I lost my 21 year old cat, Sheba, to Lymphatic Cancer. My world literally fell apart - I was absolutely devastated. She had been in my life for nearly 2/3 of my life & I felt empty without her. My heart physically ached from the pain.

We rescued Sheba at approximately 2 weeks old when her mother was sadly run over & killed. As a family we ‘raised’ her, being on shifts to feed her milk every 3 hours. She had no mother to learn from & we taught her what we could, but her natural instincts were amazing.

Despite many medical conditions, she lived until the age of 21 – so she really was a little warrior! She was an incredibly big part of our family & was very, very much loved. She has left a huge hole in our lives & is deeply missed.

I couldn't bare the empty house - to me, pets make a house a home. I was a mess without her - crying all day everyday. I still had so much love to give to another cat and, selfishly, I knew the thing I needed was the comfort of a cat.

I always rescue cats & so 15 days after Sheba died, I asked Worthing Cat Welfare Trust which cat had been there the longest & Mr Bennington had been with them for 9 months at that point. He was so shy that people didn't warm to him. However, when I went to see him, out of 9/10 cats there he was the one I immediately made eye contact with as I walked in. He was standing up against the enclosure trying to reach me - it's like he knew I was there to rescue him. Considering he would usually hide at visitors, it was obviously meant to be! I thought he'd settle better with some familiarity, so I asked the lady fostering them which cats he got on best with & she said Rainbow & Chandler - 4 month old kittens! They were playing so wonderfully together that I couldn't separate them! So I came home that day with all 3 cats & never looked back.

I've always said to Dad I have a "different" smile when with my cats & I think you can really see it in photos & videos. Most people will say their 'happy place' is maybe a holiday destination or the beach or similar - mine is relaxing in bed with all my cats with me.

Although I technically rescued my 3 cats, in all honesty, they actually rescued me.

I am so grateful to WCWT for allowing me to adopt my 3 beautiful babies. It's because of my huge passion for cats & I know how fantastic WCWT are, that I want to fundraise for them.

Worthing Cat Welfare Trust for a long time relied solely on donations. This is a charity that really needs as much support as possible.

They also have a fantastic scheme called "the Golden Oldies scheme" where WCWT will help towards financial aspects if you adopt one of the elderly cats. There is more information about this is one of the photos here in my Go Fund Me.

I am so extremely grateful for any donations - everything helps! And please can you all share this to friends/family and social media. Thank you so much for your support.

WORTHING CAT WELFARE TRUST'S STORY:

"Worthing Cat Welfare Trust was started 28 years ago by Iris Green and myself, with a lot of help and support from Carole, Sharon, Tina and Carole’s Mum, who bought us a van, so that Carole (our Welfare officer at that time) could carry on with her important work.

At that time we had 40 cats in our care and the princely sum of £40! We did car boot sales and any other fundraising that would help. We paid for cat food and vet bills ourselves. Carla Lane opened our first charity shop in Brighton Road, which proved to be very successful and started us out on the path to where we are today.

We couldn’t have done any of it without our band of fosterers, volunteers and loyal supporters. We all kept each other going through the ups and downs and, through sheer hard work and determination, have become the successful charity that we are today. We are so lucky and appreciate all you do for us.

We also have new Trustees and committee members, whose enthusiasm inspires us all.

We have an excellent network of temporary foster homes, which really equates to a ‘virtual sanctuary’ without the ruinous costs of setting up our own establishment. We will carry on with the excellent job that we do and that is rescuing and rehoming cats and kittens in and around the Worthing area.

Sandra Collins – WCWT Co-Founder

Mission Statement

We exist to provide and finance a safe and caring environment for abandoned, unwanted and distressed cats and kittens in the Worthing area, to arrange veterinary care, neutering, microchipping and to find loving, permanent homes wherever possible.

Charity Overview

The charity was formed in July 1995, granted charity status in October 1995 and consists of a team of experienced and professional carers watched over and supported by a board of trustees.

Prior to re-homing, our cats are cared for in a number of shelters (one of which is dedicated to mums & kittens) and by a number of foster-carers, who take them in as part of the family. We also have a location for cats, who are unfortunately unsuitable for re-homing due to old age, illness or severe trauma, in order that they can spend the rest of their lives in safety and tranquillity."