This story was submitted as part of the Fur-tastic Scrapbook contest. Winners will receive $500, plus $2,000 in cash and supplies for their favorite rescue. You can vote for your favorite finalist through August 1 here!

I work at a truck stop, and it's no secret that stray or feral cats are around the grounds. Some stay a while, make it their home, and some are just simply passing through. My coworkers and I are always tending to the needs of a new one that continuously hangs around. If it isn't trapping and spaying, it's feeding the hungry souls.

PHOTO: CYNTHIA FRISCH

One cat made a name for himself. Fat Cat loved living on the grounds, and it was his home for 17 years. Folks who regularly stopped here would make it a point to ask one of us on duty about him. Sadly he passed away last year. Just another feral cat story: roaming around, looking for food, having kittens, survive to stay alive.

It was becoming different for Pumpkin; it just seemed like she was staying around longer and coming back more frequently. She met me in the morning for breakfast and later returned for dinner. She also gained a nice, warm, comfy, weather-proof house with self heated mats, to get her through the colder weather. I knew she appreciated it, for when I pulled up in the morning, out she came, greeting me, with such appreciation as she strolled down to welcome me for the start of our day. A lovely sight she was.

Days, weeks, months went by. Little did I know, she was kinda sizing me up and gaining my trust and that I was gaining a forever furry friend.

PHOTO: CYNTHIA FRISCH

Then January 2022's snowstorm was upon us. The next day, no Pumpkin. I went looking around, calling for her, drove around the area, hoping for some ray of hope, a sighting of her. Every search came up with nothing. I would leave there, praying that she was okay, that she just sheltered in place and that the snow had her blocked somewhere, or that maybe someone had just picked her up. Anything was better than thinking the worst.

Late one night, I received a picture message from one of my coworkers, "Look who's here!" My heart skipped beats, filled with joy and then relief. Pumpkin was okay, scared and hungry, but safe. I think the next fateful morning, Pumpkin and I knew that absence from each other would be the last.

She has brought a sense of joy to her new home and to all our lives here. Looking back, I'm not really sure who rescued who, but I do know this, it was surely meant to be for the both of us. My prayers are always going out, when I see cats roaming around, that they might find someone with a kind heart and have their own Pumpkin story to tell themselves.

PHOTO: CYNTHIA FRISCH

Story submitted by Cynthia Frisch in support of House of Dreams Cat Shelter. Vote for your favorite Fur-tastic Scrapbook story here!