(616) 498-1316
Memorials » Current Memorial

In Memoriam: Hope

By Jena Stover, published on April 1st, 2022
"Dr. Barnes was so kind, warm and gentle with Hope. I think the way that Dr. Barnes handled Hope’s body after we said goodbye was equally as important to me as was the way she and the staff treated me from my first phone call to the process of helping Hope let go. The dignity that she was shown and the gentleness with her body meant so much. Dr. Barnes also made sure my dog and my other cat who was hiding were able to say goodbye to Hope in the right way. I’ll never be able to say thank you enough."

Hope was my fur baby for 16 years. She was about 3 years old when I rescued her from Kalamazoo Animal Rescue where I was a volunteer. She had been living in the Kalamazoo Animal Rescue store, we had at the time, for a year. I didn’t adopt her immediately because my boyfriend is terribly allergic to cats. I couldn’t figure out why no one would adopt her – she was adorable, sweet, kind, and I felt so bad for her living alone in the store at night when we were all gone. I finally realized I wanted to adopt her and I did!! I named her Hope because she never gave up hope of a loving family adopting her. She lost her tail on a construction site where it was severed, the construction workers brought her into the vet, she had surgery and went into the rescue. Her name was Bunny when I adopted her because of her missing tail and I didn’t like her being thought of that way. So I adopted her and changed her name to Hope. She was sassy, a survivor, she kept me in line, she was a cuddle bug in bed, she was beautiful and adorable all in one package. She had the softest fur too. Soft like a baby bunny. I love you and miss baby girl.