By Greg Epps
August 2021
This is George. He is no longer with us as our neighbors found him in their back yard last night passed over. George’s passing is very specific to Old Town. My name is Greg Epps and my husband and I live part time in Old Town. We’ve been lucky enough to develop incredible friendships over the last 6 years that we cherish deeply.
Being chosen by this beautiful boy is not the least of them. We were lucky enough to have him pick us as two of his people. He was a fixture in Old Town and had really become a sort of mascot for all of us. He picked his people carefully (Mrs. Cynthia, Pat, Jill, and us being the main part of his extended family) and we were lucky enough to be in that group.
With Covid we spend much more time in Old Town over the last 2 years and he followed us to watch the sunset every night that we went, and set on the arm of our adirondak chair each morning and evening to let us know that he was ready to be fed. He brought so many people such great joy as they saw him sitting on the bench at the river watching the sunset with us. He liked love, a big lap, and food in that order.
George was Old Town and I wanted to share the story as many people in Old Town are grieving today.
The “Prince of Old Town” has left us all bereft. He was NOT that old. I suppose, absent an autopsy, we will never know why or how he departed. No matter what day or time of night every January I would arrive, windshield-weary from Long Island, he just somehow knew and was always waiting on my breezeway to greet me loudly & cuddle. I woke every morning to find him waiting patiently on my porch rail to be let in, imperiously demanding his Meow Mix, with his “entourage” of neighborhood strays in tow (to be fed at appropriate distances from “his majesty”, for sure): Jet-the-Heavyweight black cat and an unfortunately homely orange boy I named Garfield. All the gang, including his humans, will miss him terribly. RIP my fluffy friend!
Glad to hear he had good humans to care for him, and that he passed away near them. There is at least some closure.
Cats up this way are disappearing, and the coyotes are increasing in population, a sad coincidence.
We now bring the cats in at night, and hope to avoid such tragic endings.