Since it first opened in 2017, Treetops Kitty Café, tucked into a cozy mall on West State Street in Kennett Square, has become a sanctuary both for cats seeking a forever home and the many humans who visit there to enjoy the company of affectionate felines over a cup of coffee.

In an increasingly stressful world, to spend a few moments petting a cat at the café is the equivalent of a shavasana exhale, the minute-long admiration of an old tree, or a private sojourn to a place of faith.

During its seven years of operation, Treetops has also become one of Chester County’s leading rescue shelters and adoption centers for sheltered, neglected and physically harmed cats, and to date, it has paired 855 cats with their owners.

“We offer a safe space for people who are going through a hard time,” said Café Manager-Owner Hannah April. “We get a lot of people who tell us that visiting here has been the cheapest form of therapy they have ever had. We want to be there for everyone, whether they are coming in just to find comfort from our cats, or if they’re looking to adopt to help fill something in their life that only a cat can fill.”

While the Café’s chief mission is both charitable and humanitarian, it is also financially challenging. Operating as a non-profit from the beginning, the Café functions largely on the kindness of its private and corporate donors and sponsors, as well as from adoption services. It’s a financial albatross that has always lingered over the café.

“The financial pinch as always been there and it’s something that we have dealt with since we first opened,” said April, who co-owns the business her mother, Holly Yeatman, who took over for founders George and Laurie Treisner. “From the beginning, it’s been hard to bring in donations, and it has not been sustainable. We don’t qualify for federal funding, and grants are hard for us to get.”

While adoption revenue remained steady during the COVID-19 pandemic, the café was forced to shut its doors to the visiting public because of restrictions and as a result, financial contributions dried up a few years ago, and it’s been an uphill climb ever since. Over the last few years, as the pandemic slowly began to let up and restations were lifted, the café’s expenses began to rise. While the café is not in debt, it operates at a monthly deficit, which makes it challenging to  cover basic costs such as food and supplies, as well as operations and dental procedures for cats.

On June 10, faced with mounting expenses and limited income, April wrote the following message on the café’s social media page:

We desperately need your help to keep Treetops in operation. We’ve been trying to keep up with the rising costs of everything, much like you have. We’re in a tough spot right now.
We are closer to closing our doors than we ever have been before. It has become increasingly hard to keep our heads above water, even with active fundraisers running. Meta takes forever to pay us out, so we haven’t finished receiving the money from our Spring Fundraiser and things are tight. We need immediate donations so we can continue our work.
Treetops Kitty Cafe is not just a cat cafe. We are a rescue, first and foremost. We are dedicated to saving senior cats from shelter cages and rescuing shy and misunderstood cats from a euthanasia outcome. Our work is not done, and we have big plans for our future, but we need your help.

A little more than two weeks later, the response to April’s message has been overwhelming. She estimated that the café has received more than 200 donations – ranging at all levels -- with many more expected to arrive in the coming days and weeks. 

“I feel so seen by people that I didn’t know were looking out for us,” she said. “It makes me feel good about what we’re doing here and reaffirms my belief in what we’re doing here, because there are dark days when it seems the world is against us. Feeling the overwhelming support from everyone is more than I can process at this moment, and I am still working through it.

“I have shed many tears over the last week, happy and sad. I am absolutely floored by the amount of people who have supported us, and the ways they are doing so. We have seen the community rally behind us in the past in smaller numbers, but to see them rally around us in larger numbers like these has blown me away.”

The donations that have been coming into the café over the last two weeks have often been accompanied by something even more precious to April.

“It has been so heartwarming every time I see a donation come in and someone leaves a note saying that they have adopted from us, and how great their pet has been for their family. It’s been wonderful to read how much we have made an impact on their families, and we want to continue to do that.”

To make a contribution to Treetops Kitty Café, go to Venmo: @treetopskittycafe; PayPal/Zelle:[email protected]; or by check, mailed to: Treetops Kitty Café, 305 West State Street Kennett Square, Pa. 19348. Contributions may also be made at the Café during store hours. 

To contact Staff Writer Richard L. Gaw, email [email protected].