Elmo 1997-2009

As some of you know, my wife Ellen is in the cat rescue business.  It would follow that we would have a few felines of our own and that it is true.  In fact, 11 cats share our home along with a myriad of stray, homeless and abandoned cats every year.  The visitors are housed in guest quarters in the basement.

In 1997, when we lived in Columbus, Ohio, a young male stray was brought to us who had been found by some truckers by the side of a highway.  He had been burned with cigarettes and was generally in bad shape.  Ellen restored him to health and we spent six months holding him on our laps as we watched television so that he would learn to trust humans again. The strategy paid off because he relaxed and became part of the gang. We named him Elmo.   

In 1998, When we retired to the North Fork,  Elmo began to gain weight.  We really don't know why as he didn't eat any more than his 11 brothers and sisters, but he ultimately weighed in at 23 pounds.  He was a big but gentle guy. Because of his girth, there were places on his body where he could not reach in order to clean himself, so the others took over that task for him.  Suffice it to say that the others must have really loved him.

Over the years, Elmo became the official greeter at our house.  When visitors arrived, he would jump onto the kitchen table and roll over on his back exposing his belly to all the petting and scratching our friends, workmen and any other category of visitor were willing to provide.

On one occasion, we had a chimney fire requiring us to call the fire department.  The firefighters arrived quickly and marched into our kitchen where the first thing they encountered was Elmo flat on his back awaiting their undying attention and affection. The fire, which had pretty much gone out, was almost ignored by Riverhead's bravest as they attended to Elmo's inviting belly and purr.  He was like that with almost anyone who came to visit.

The short of this is that about two weeks ago Elmo died.  If this appeared in an obituary in a newspaper it would have said, Elmo, age 12 died after a brief but valiant bout with cancer.   He is survived by his 11 brothers and sisters.  Cremation was private at the Mattituck/Laurel Veterinary Hospital.  Friends are asked to plant a bulb or flowering shrub in their yard in his memory.

Goodbye, Elmo.  We will be interviewing greeters for a long time before we can find anyone who can fill the job as well as you did.