Kentucky soldier to give Kuwaiti cat a new home in the US

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Staff Sergeant Daryl Casey works on helicopters at Camp Buehring in Kuwait and is nearing th end of his third deployment to the Middle East with the Kentucky Army National Guard. A cat has made this deployment different from the earlier ones, and has touched Daryl’s heart.

“When we first got here, we were just getting settled in and there was a mama cat who was kind of hanging around our area. Not too long after we got in and got settled in, she had kittens,” Daryl said.

“One of the particular little kittens, he and I just kind of bonded. He’s see me coming in and he’d come running up to me and rub against my legs. I’d sit down and he’d jump in my lap. When everybody sees him walking around, they go ‘Hey there’s Daryl’s cat!’ They always say, ‘Hey are you looking for your daddy? He’s right over there!’,” he said.

Daryl named the cat Stanley and says Stanley has made a big difference in his life.

“Christmas and Thanksgiving were, for me, really tough. Those are big family gatherings and I was sitting at work feeling kind of blue and somebody opens the door and here comes Stanley into the office. He kind of looks at me and jumps up in my lap. You can kind of see from those pictures he just kind of lays up beside me like ‘Hey man, it’s going to be ok. I’m here’.”

Friends and family took to including cat toys in their care packages to him.

“We had some catnip mice that people had sent and those cats went crazy for that!” he said.

Daryl will be heading home to Frankfurt, Kentucky in about a month and, as he contemplated his return to the States, couldn’t bear the thought of leaving Stanley behind. Nowzad is helping with the costs and process of getting Stanley out of Kuwait and over to the US to his soon-to-be new home.

“Getting home will be an absolutely joyful event but just to see that little cat’s smiling face when I come in the house, that’s just going to be something. I can’t wait for it.

“People say you’re saving this cat’s life and I’m like, well, in a way he’s kind of saved me just by being there for me,” Daryl said.

A YouCaring fundraising page organized by Nowzad to pay the costs to relocate Stanley to the US has so far raised just over $2,00o against an initial $1,500 goal. It will cost about $1,300 to get Stanley medically cleared, then flown to Atlanta.

Daryl writes at the YouCaring page: “My story with Stanley begins in late September of last year. I work on the flight line at Camp Buehring, Kuwait and cats are kept around in order to control the rodent population. Stanley’s litter was born in September. He was one of 7 cats in the litter. 3 boys and 4 girls.

“Right away, Stanley and I began bonding. I’d give him bits of chicken and had kitten food sent from home, but what really drew me to Stanley was his sweet disposition and gentle way with the other kittens. He was the biggest of the litter, but he always waited until the rest of the kittens had eaten before he’d eat. He seemed like their protector. He’s very comfortable around people and never is never skittish about being petted and played with.

“Stanley was always around through the hard time and the loneliness. When I’m having an exceptionally bad day, his loving attitude and playfulness would always bring a smile to my face. I had some very hard times while I was here, but through prayer and the love of that little cat, I was able to endure and get back to normal. Or as normal as you can be on a deployment.

“Stanley has brought so much joy and happiness to me on this deployment, I very much want to get him home to Kentucky where he’ll be loved and cared for.”

Watch the WKYT report on the story:

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