Humanitarian AidRefugeesSyria
SCM has spent a decade helping the refugees that have fled Syria and other war-torn countries in the Middle East. We have raised hundreds of thousands of dollars to provide food, medicine, basic supplies, supported medical missions to the region and sent containers loaded with supplies you have donated to help the refugees get back on their feet. The refugees have left everything behind, including beloved pets as they scooped up their children and ran for their lives. Now, we want to direct a bit of our efforts to help those four-legged victims of the war in Syria by supporting Ernesto’s Sanctuary for Cats, near Aleppo.
Before the civil war in Syria, Mohammad Alaa Aljaleel was an electrician in Aleppo. After the war broke out, he began driving an ambulance to help those injured get medical care as fast as possible. While he was driving around the city, he noticed the abandoned and stray cats and started feeding them.
Aljaleel has always cared for animals, believing it was a responsibility to care for those who are innocents and not able to care for themselves. Eventually his story got out and he was known as the Aleppo Catman. He was able to turn a neighboring property to his home into a shelter for the cats and was soon housing 100 little furry survivors of the war.
The story spread even more, and more help came to him to feed and care for the animals. But they were not safe and the sanctuary soon was hit by an explosion during a bombing in the city. Over the next several years, the sanctuary was able to move to safety, take in more animals, and expand to include a vet clinic and a farm for larger animals such as horses, goats, dogs, etc.
In their current location, outside of Aleppo in the countryside, they house about 1000 cats, provide free vet services to the community, rescue animals in distress or suffering abuse, spay and neuter, and provide employment for several people that feed, clean, assist the vet, serve the food in their “restaurant of 1000 cats” and maintain the properties. They also have in the past provided animal therapy to orphaned children and plan to continue to do that as well as support a local orphanage.
SCM wants to support Ernesto’s Sanctuary for Cats in their efforts to save lives and make their world a little brighter. They are always in need of funds for food and medications/vaccines for the cats and other animals they take in. Please make a tax-deductible donation to help Ernesto’s take care of the animals that have been left behind while their families became refugees. Our goal is to raise $5000 for them.
Read more about Ernesto’s on their website: House of Cats Ernesto – The official website (ernestosanctuary.org).
The cats and other animals at Ernesto’s were once someone’s pet or the offspring of an abandoned animal. They have been deprived of their family but now live at Ernesto’s where they are safe and cared for.