Stray H.E.L.P. is a cooperative community of dedicated volunteers sharing a common purpose. There are many opportunities to join us.

The following is a list of volunteer positions you may apply for.

Trapper: A coach will teach you to apply safe, humane trapping and transferring practices of cats and kittens in need of TNR and/or sheltering.

Transporter: This includes transporting cats to and from veterinary appointments or clinic, and adoption events. Infrequently, we may have the opportunity to place cats and kittens outside the Hudson Valley which would require long-distance travel.

Foster: This allows us to temporarily place friendly, abandoned cats, or kittens into homes for socialization in preparation for permanent adoption elsewhere. and leaving street life behind them. A separate application and home visit is required.

Recovery caregiver: Support is necessary for all spayed/neutered cats after surgery and for cats recovering from illness or injury. This can be done at a volunteer’s home or may require travel to an established recovery care location

Adoption Facilitator: This role requires interacting with the public. Faciliators typically work in one or more of the following functions.

• Petsmart Facilitator: This entails meeting potential adopters, cleaning the pet cubicles, feeding, watering, observing the interactions of the cats and potential adopters, and sharing your observations with the adoption committee.
• Home Assessor: This entails traveling to the potential adopter’s home to assess the condition of the living environment for the cat being adopted. You will need to be able to look for legitimate issues that would preclude that individual/family from adopting one of our pets. In most cases, this is a formality but in some, you will need to be comfortable with returning the decision to the adoption committee that this is not in the best interest of either the cat or adopting individual(s).
• Event Worker: This entails educating the public about TNR, community cats, and how to make a positive impact on their lives and the lives of the cats. Timing will vary depending upon the event itself. Information will be provided as events are determined.

Business Services: We need individuals who are business and organization-minded to help the organization run smoothly. Skills we are always in need of include the following.

• WebMaster: This entails adding and updating content on the website.
• Database Manager: This entails updating the database, logging cats, costs, fees, donations, adoptions, volunteers, and data export for metrics.
• Call Manager: This critical first step entails handling phone calls from individuals seeking assistance with colony cats, answer questions in accordance with Stray H.E.L.P.’s guidelines, or direct the call to the appropriate individual/agency. Generally, you would be the first point of contact for anyone interacting with our organization.
• Public Outreach/Marketer: This entails, planning events, programs to support the work of fundraising, education, adoption, fostering, and promoting our monthly low-cost clinic.
• Legislative Team: This entails, organizing meetings and presentations with representatives and service providers to advocate for legislation that decreases suffering and protects the colonies, their caretakers, and the TNR staff at large.
• Grant Writer: This critical role includes cultivating relationships with our donors, research grant opportunities, and apply for the same.
• Financial Analyst: Look at metrics and understand trends, see areas for balance, and move money as needed to benefit SH. WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?