A fundraiser has been launched to create a bronze statue of a beloved Ambleside cat.
Riley – also known as the Millans Park Cat – lived to be around 13-years-old and was adored by local people and tourists alike before she unexpectedly died last week.
The tortoiseshell cat was hit by a car and was then later taken to a vet where she died.
After news spread of Riley’s death people took to social media to share tributes and flowers, pictures and notes were placed on a bench she frequented in the town.
Described as the community’s cat, Riley even had her own Facebook group where people would post about meeting her.
Riley first came into the lives of the people living, working and visiting Ambleside in 2011 – when Dodd’s Italian Restaurant owner Laszlo Papp, 42, found her struggling in the snow as a kitten.
He said: “It was in 2011 during a winter month and out of nowhere we’d had a big snowstorm. I was placing orders out the back of the restaurant which opens onto Millans Park and I saw a little stray kitten running in the snow and desperately crying.
“So I went back to the kitchen and grabbed milk and some ham and I tried to lure her in our shed that has our boiler in it. I thought it’s not too hot but warmer than the snow.
“But she wouldn’t come near me or be stroked at that point, so I put the food down and she saw it and had it on her own.
“When I came in the next day she was still around and that was the case for another 13 years up until last week or so.”
Naturally a free spirit – Laszlo said local businesses and residents took it upon themselves to care for Riley.
He added: “She managed all her life outside and didn’t go into homes. Everyone did try but she was just happy being outside.
“She wasn’t too friendly in her first years and she would sleep on our kitchen’s flat roof near a generator. When she was hungry she would come down and people would feed her.
“Eventually she loved to be around people and became really friendly. People when they came to Ambleside would ask about her and look out for her and she would go and wander but would come and visit us at least once every day.
“One of the neighbours actually had a wooden dog house and brought it for her and put a note on it about her story – so people could get an idea of who she was.
“But she lived to quite an age for a cat living outside, she was never ill or sick and she always looked great.”
Laszlo said that after talking with people in Riley’s Facebook group that he had the idea to fundraise for a bronze statue to immortalise Riley and what she brought to the town.
He said: “Its a big loss for the town, I know there’s a lot happening in the world, but for people passing this place regularly you would know her and see her and if you liked cats you would have interacted with her.
“I saw people chatting about their memories of meeting her and spending time with her on her Facebook group and I thought a little statue would be lovely.
“Animals are therapeutic and it was nice seeing her around. She was everybody’s cat, the community’s cat and it’s in our human nature to take things for granted but I know there are many people impacted by her death.”
Laszlo and his team at Dodd’s Italian Restaurant also created a new pizza – ‘Riley’s Favourite’ – to help fundraise for the memorial.
He added: “We put the special pizza on in to pay homage to Riley’s love of napping in the sun by the restaurant.
“We’re in a slow period of the year but over half of the pizza’s we sold yesterday were Riley’s Favourite.
“But I decided to set up the GoFundMe to expedite the whole collection of the money so we can do something soon.”
A total of £1,501 has already been donated towards the £2,500 target on Riley’s GoFundMe page – but Laszlo said he was worried more money may be needed.
He said: “Bronze statues can be expensive, Max the Miracle Dog’s statue cost around £15,000 when it was created and the pricing has gone up with the cost of living.
“I’m speaking to people who do commissions on bronze but we’re open to other options and help. We want everyone to be happy with it.
“We could also have a bronze plaque with a 3D face which would cost less. But I know people want to sit next to it to take pictures and stroke it. Bronze can shine when people stroke it, so that would be nice.
“We’re not giving up on the statue idea but we do need some help with it. I’d like it to have a QR code on it so people can scan it and read about her story or change it in the future to raise money for charity.”
Once completed Laszlo said the community are planning to install Riley’s statue in Millans Park.
Artists or anyone who can help support the project can get in touch with Laszlo by emailing [email protected]
You can donate to Riley the Cat’s fundraiser by clicking here.
