Meet our Team

Leo - Resident Kitty

Leo was part of the first transport ever on August 11, 2017. Our doors were not yet open to the public but he came to us from another shelter where he had been been returned simply because he needed more attention. Once he was in our lounge we understood exactly what they meant, he requires much more snuggles and love then most kitties in our program so we decided that he would become our resident kitty of The Catcade.

He has become a fixture of our lounge. He is happy and content with the constant attention he receives from the hundreds of visitors that come through our door each week.

In honor of Leo and all his other cat friends that we rescue we now have a monthly donor program named after him: Friends of Leo. These funds help us continue saving cats on a monthly basis so our lifesaving work never stops.

Shelly Casey - The reason we have 1 star reviews

You’ve probably seen Shelly racing through the lounge to get some business done. She’s either going 100mph trying to rescue a cat who needs an eyeball removed or under a heated blanket reading a book and simultaneously trying to watch Netflix.

Christopher Gutierrez - Sassy Dumpster Jumper

Do you ever wonder where all of our ridiculous social media content comes from? It’s this dude. He is equal parts Portillo’s fountain Coke, biking along the lake, and complaining about acid reflux. He’s definitely going to overshare if you get him talking long enough which is not hard to do.

Chris is absolutely the one keeping us balanced between saving a million cats and burning out. Just don’t ask him to share his chocolate donut.

Alison lindholm - the og

If you wanted to know all of our secrets definitely make friends with Alison. She has been with us since before we even opened our doors to the public. She has been our #1 volunteer, always stepping in to help in any way she can. Over the years Alison has fostered difficult kitties, adopted a special needs kitty from us, stepped in to help at our fundraisers, and is always ready to scoop poop if those kittens start to make a mess.

Alison now helps out part time assisting with organizing medical files and using her design skills to help with whatever weird idea Chris or Shelly has bouncing around in their head. She’s The OG for a reason and we can’t imagine the Cade without her.

CHRISTINE NENDICK - Insubordinate

If you have adopted a cat from us in the last 3 years then you have definitely met or emailed with Christine. She’s always working on getting cats into forever homes and yelling at Shelly to rescue more cats and telling Chris to shut up. She got her nickname for a reason, I mean just look at her picture - the rule was to take a picture with Leo and she’s the only one who chose to do her own thing.

Christine has been a longtime supporter of the Cade and was even the first person to interview us for her Instagram/Blog the week before we opened back in 2017. We may give her a hard time but her animal advocacy never stops - she is usually spending her free time volunteering at Chicago Animal Care and Control.

You can follow all of her fancy style and rescue adventures on her Instagram @rescueinstyle.

Cat Waggoner - *Smash*

Maybe you always see Cat sitting behind a laptop typing away furiously, she’s really the only one of us working nonstop. This girl is hella serious when it comes to caring for these cats and she is usually coordinating fosters to come in for exams and keeps the cats up-to-date on their vaccine schedules. Just please don’t ask her to close a door because she is definitely smashing her finger in it.

Cat started with us as a volunteer and quickly jumped in when an opportunity opened up. She has been such an important addition to our team helping with the medical side of our rescue work.

Mollie carter - wildcard

Listen, Mollie once told guests to take off their shirts when she meant coats so really anything can happen when she’s working. She keeps us on our toes, literally, we are always running after her because she is never sitting in one place for very long and you definitely have to always keep her on track.

Mollie gives so much of herself to these cats and they are lucky to have her fighting the good fight for them.

Amanda Konc - House mom

Amanda might have her own children but we all made her symbolically adopt us. She gives the best hugs and always makes sure we stay hydrated and stress free. Amanda is a mom to all especially the cats.

Deborah Bottjer - Foster coordinator

In January 2020 Deborah, or Debbi as we like to call her, joined our team taking on the very large task of helping to develop our Foster Program. She may be volunteering her time but she goes above and beyond to coordinate fosters when we do transports.

Debbi is also our resident kitten expert. She has been fostering neonate kittens for years so she comes with that extra knowledge to help round out our medical team. She runs her own Instagram where you can follow all of her foster kitten adventures: @wearekittensmitten

Dr. Lenyr Muñoz - Veterinarian

Dr. Muñoz joined our team in the spring of 2018. She has been responsible for helping us advance the medical side of our program. She is forward thinking and progressive with her care and knowledge of cats.

Now she volunteers her time to come by our shelter and do exams, vaccines, and diagnostic testing in-house.