Meet one of our amazing A Place For Meow Rescue fosters — Jason Umlauf! Jason, 40, is originally from Buffalo, NY, and moved to Rapid City in the summer of 2022. He’s been serving in the US Air Force since 2002, and is an Explosive Ordnance Disposal technician stationed at Ellsworth AFB. Jason began fostering for A Place For Meow just this past spring. He shared that his son & daughter were visiting from out of state and wanted to adopt a cat, which led him to one of our Sunday adoption events at Petco. “I wasn’t sure if I could commit to adopting, but I learned that foster families were urgently needed. So I decided to give it a try. Since June, I’ve fostered about 10 cats, 6 of them moving on to their furever homes. Having foster cats has been a wonderful experience…learning each of their personalities, playing with them, and providing them a safe environment brings a cascade of great feelings.” In his short time as a foster, he’s been labeled as our resident ‘feral cat whisperer’. When asked what advice he would share for someone thinking about fostering, he said “have patience. Let them get to know you. Many come off the street and don’t know what its like to be loved on. Give them time and space.” In his spare time, Jason is a student at Oklahoma State University, pursuing a Masters Degree in Forensic Science, specializing in Arson, Explosives, Firearms and Toolmarks Investigations. 

Say hi to our awesome foster — Avery! Avery was born & raised right here in Rapid City, and grew up wanting to work with animals. She ended up going to school for Biology Education instead, but she fulfills her childhood dreams by working with A Place For Meow Rescue. She has always had a strong love of animals of all types, which is what led her to take in a few orphan/injured animals found in the community. After caring for those rescues, she came across a Facebook post from A Place for Meow asking for fosters. She decided to volunteer to raise bottle-fed babies, and got her first litter shortly after. As the little babies grew, so did her love for the rescue, and she’s been hooked ever since. Despite promising her boyfriend, Isaac, that she wouldn’t keep any foster kittens, she did indeed keep one. No one was surprised by this, except her. She is now the proud mom to one dog, one ball python, two tortoises, and FIVE cats — and she loves every minute of it! In addition to fostering, Avery is also our fundraiser coordinator. She pours her creativity and passion into this role— every dollar and donation helps these animals! Her family and boyfriend are huge supporters, and step in to help whenever she needs a hand. She couldn’t do it without them!