IN LOVING MEMORY OF PURRCY 2003-2022

Purrcy found CVAS in 2013 when Nancy, a long-time volunteer, was trapping a group of cats who had been left alone out on Williams Lake Road when their owner passed away. Nancy was checking the traps in the morning and Purrcy came out of nowhere, stumbled up to her and collapsed at her feet. He was skin and bones and missing most of his hair. Most likely he would not have survived another night or two outside in his condition. He had to wear a sweater for months until his fur grew back. A dramatic origin story for a dramatic cat.

Purrcy loved hanging out with all of us, keeping our desks, chairs, and hearts warm. He fell in love with his cat girlfriend Eva, another rescued cat who lives at CVAS, and the two remained close companions until the end. He was greatly beloved by our staff, volunteers, and all who knew him. He passed of natural causes at the age of 19 and a half years old surrounded by his CVAS family.

Zac West- President

Zac has 40 years of project management, operational planning, and strategic planning experience in the federal government and the private sector.  He is currently a project analyst and lead for project assessment and reporting systems within the Office of Project Management at the U.S. Department of Energy.  Prior to the Department of Energy, he served in the U.S. Army for 32 years, retiring as a Colonel of Engineering working in both as a combat and facility engineer and as an Army strategist.  From 1982 to 1996, Mr. West served the Army as a reserve member and working as a process and project engineer in industry from 1987 to 1996.  During this time he worked on over 40 projects in various leadership and supporting roles in the pulp and paper and utilities industries with focus on large non-traditional fuel boilers to increase capacity over original design, ensure safe operations, gain efficiency in operations, and to reduce or mitigate emissions in order to meet increased compliance requirements.

In addition to volunteering with CVAS, Scouts, Veterans of Foreign Wars, North East Washington Amateur Radio Club, the Chewelah Golf and Country Club, he is a registered professional engineer in the State of Washington for chemical engineering and an Assistant Professor at National Defense University.  He is a Project Management Institute certified Project Management Professional.  He has a master of science degree in Joint Campaign Planning and Strategy from the National Defense University, a Masters of Business Administration degree from Touro University International, and a Bachelor of Science in Pulp and Paper Science, Technology, and Engineering degree from the University of Washington (yeah the other side of the state).

mwest@cvasanctuary.org

LANCE PELTON - VICE PRESIDENT

Lance brings much needed IT experience to CVAS.  He is a principal system engineer with over 20 years in the computer industry.  He proudly served 4 years in the Air Force.  Lance previously resided in Texas where he volunteered  with a local veterinarian office as assistant while receiving his bachelor's in animal science pre veterinary degree.  Also, he was his neighborhood HOA government chair where he worked with the local city government, and helped with the social and newsletter committees.  Lance currently volunteers with his local fire district.  In his spare time he is also handy with construction and cars. Lance acts as the technology specialist at CVAS and performs lots of critical maintenance tasks at the sanctuary

lpelton@cvasanctuary.org

Suzanne Roebke - COMMUNITY OUTREACH

Suzanne has a A.A.S. Degree in Business and Accounting. She started volunteering for CVAS in the Spring of 2021 and joined the board of directors in late fall of 2021. If you have attended a vaccination clinic you may have met Suzy while your fur baby was being taken inside for treatment. Suzy loves meeting every pet and their owners. Suzy’s friendly, outgoing personality is why she is a purrfect fit in being our public outreach director.

sroebke@cvasanctuary.org

Janet West - TREASURER

Janet has been a volunteer with CVAS since February 2019, and she joined the board in December 2019. After spending over 25 years in public and private business as a bookkeeper and administrative assistant, Janet went back to college and in 2015 received her bachelor’s degree in geography from the University of Mary Washington in Fredericksburg, Virginia.

Janet is a member of P.E.O. Chapter BS in Chewelah, represents CVAS at the Chewelah Chamber of Commerce, participates in events hosted by NE Washington Amateur Radio Club in Chewelah, and is a reserve Scouter and merit badge counselor for Scouting America.

Janet is originally for Snohomish County, Washington. Janet and her husband, Zac (also a volunteer at CVAS), moved to Chewelah in 2018. They have three grown children, four grandsons, a granddaughter, and two cats, Hemi and Nutmeg, who were adopted from CVAS in November 2019.

treasurer@cvasanctuary.org

Jenny Pelton - Secretary

Jenny and her husband of over 20 years, Lance, are transplants from Fort Worth, Texas and truly love their new home state.  Jenny is a mother of three grown children, and blessed with one granddaughter.  Jenny started with CVAS as a kitten foster, and now has added office work and board member to her CVAS resume.  Previous to moving to Washington Jenny worked in the mortgage industry, as an office manager for close to a decade in a senior financial planning office.  During the summer she volunteers for 3 Pines youth camp in Kettle Falls preparing meals for the campers.  In Texas she also volunteered for the following groups and positions: HOA social and newsletter chair for a 526 home subdivision.  Treasurer for the Keller Bible Church, and one of the original members.  Girl Scout and Boy Scout leader.

Jenny's goal is to help spread the word about CVAS.  She would love to educate, and get the youth of our area involved with CVAS.  Also, to help with more adoption events to find our precious animals new homes.

jpelton@cvasanctuary.org

McKenzie Grant - General Member

Hi, I’m McKenzie! I grew up on the west side of Washington and spent some time in the Navy before settling in Colville with my family about four years ago. When I arrived, I noticed the area's overpopulation of feral and stray cats and knew I had to help.

I’ve been volunteering at the sanctuary for about 2.5 years, and you’ll often find me at vaccination clinics,  spay/neuter clinics, or assisting the Animal Care Team. I’ve also had the chance to work with adopters, helping them find their newest family members.

My goal is to give every animal that comes through the sanctuary all the love and compassion they deserve—whether they’re here for a vaccine or a looking for their forever home, they’ll leave with as much love as I can give them!

mgrant@cvasanctuary.org