After college our oldest daughter, Ranell, lived and worked in the Omaha area for Allstate Insurance for seven years. She loved her job, but she had been educated in elementary education, and she decided to apply once again for a teaching job just to see if she would like it. Her new job took her across the country to Yuma, Arizona, where we helped her move in July 2003. Her school was built so that the classroom doors all opened up to the outside of the building into the courtyard where the students played. It was all on one level.
Even though Ranell fell in love with the life style and climate of the Southwest, after three years of teaching she went back into the insurance business. Ten years after that she was offered the job of Church Administrator and Children’s Minister at her church. She calls it her “dream job”. It is actually just a different form of teaching, and she enjoys writing some of the curriculum. Along with her work, she also enjoys living with one of her best friends, Shelly, and also two dogs. The story below is written by Ranell, and for those of you who love your pets, you might enjoy reading about one of hers.
Bob walked out of a bush at my school on a Sunday afternoon, Nov 16, 2003. I was still new to town, and God knew I needed a friend. He followed me from my car all the way to my classroom, and walked right inside – talking all the way. I took him home and fed him tuna and milk because I was not prepared to house a kitty. The next day a burglar locked him in a closet at my house. About 2 months later the neighbors named him Bob. I had just been calling him Kitty because I kept saying I was going to find him a good home.
About 7 years later we took him to the vet for the first time, because some other neighbors had indoor cats that had been diagnosed with leukemia. That’s when we learned that Bob was actually a girl. We continued to call HIM Bobcat for all of his days. After 10 years in Camelot, we moved to a home in the county, and worried how he would settle in. But after being forced to stay in the new house for 48 hours to know it was really his new home, he set out exploring and loved the adventure of having a field next door!
In the spring of 2017 he was attacked by a dog and needed a small surgery to insert drains. It took all three vet visits before we could successfully say “she” and “her” to the vets when talking about Bob. But he went right back to being a boy as soon as we got home. Ha! He recovered completely even in his older age and continued to enjoy his backyard and neighborhood until he died of cancer November 13, 2018. He was an adult when he first befriended me, so he was at least 16 years old when he went to kitty heaven.
Bob would often climb trees and get onto roofs in Camelot. Several times he appeared not to be able to get down from our roof; there was no tree nearby for him to jump to. So I would stand on a chair and try to help him. One day, I simply could not reach him, so I went to church and left him “helpless” on the roof, praying he’d be ok. I came home to find him safely on the ground, and never worried about trying to break my neck rescuing him again! Ha!!
Bob “owned” Camelot, and enjoyed his days exploring the townhouse community. Every once in awhile he didn’t come home at night, and we’d joke that he was staying at his ‘other family’s’ place that night. Many people loved him, petted him, and talked to him, and we even found a distant neighbor feeding him one day, thinking he was a beautiful stray!
He loved to be outside, and at one point during a chilly winter we found that he often was curled up on a neighbor’s outdoor chair. She noticed too, and gave him the most beautiful and oh-so-soft crocheted blanket as his own! She left that blanket on “his” chair for him until the day we moved away from Camelot, when she gave it to him as a parting gift.
Bob was about 5 when we brought Lulu home, a little black chihuahua. Once Lulu learned to climb the stairs, they would rip and roar around the house, chasing one another up and down the stairs and all through the upstairs bedrooms! They sounded like little horses having races! When things were quieter, Bob loved to sleep on the steps. Often, when I would go to step over him he would grab my foot and make me scream. We often imagined him laughing his little kitty laugh over that!
Before he passed, we were able to capture his footprints to create a Christmas tree ornament. Bob was the first precious member of my adopted family and stayed with us for 15 years. He will be missed. But he lives on in our joyful memories and still brings us laughter as we recall the stories of his life!
Ranell Beerman
After Bobcat died, I asked Ranell if they buried him in the backyard. She said no, as they were worried about another animal digging him up. Interestingly enough, Bobcat’s cremated remains were picked up at the vet’s office, along with other animals that had passed. The person who does this regularly disposes of the ashes somewhere in the desert. Ranell was told that he comes dressed in a suit and tie, and his job is similar to a funeral director. He assures his clients that the burial is done with dignity and kindness.
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