Brunswick holds first Columbia Avenue cat tour to benefit Midcoast Humane
Dozens of residents gathered in Brunswick for the first-ever Columbia Avenue Cat Tour on a Saturday afternoon, walking a mapped route to view, pet, and learn about neighborhood cats while collecting animal shelter donations. Organized by local resident Bianca Luque, the grassroots event drew inspiration from a similar viral gathering in Minneapolis and raised substantial supplies for Midcoast Humane.
Mapping Out the Columbia Avenue Cat Tour
Participants arrived at 4:30 p.m. to pick up a specialized “Cat Tour Map” detailing 13 official stops at local houses, four possible bonus cats, a donation station, and a hydration station. Many attendees carried cat-themed signs and stuffed animals, while the map provided descriptions of the resident felines along the route. Some cats stayed safely in their owners’ arms for petting, while others roamed yards freely to greet visitors.
Bianca Luque organized the event after seeing neighborhood cats lounging on front steps and deciding against traveling to Minnesota for their famous annual event. Over the summer, Luque advertised the tour using posters, an Instagram page, and QR code slips left at local homes. Having volunteered as a dogwalker and laundry worker for Midcoast Humane, she officially registered the neighborhood event with the society and distributed volunteer flyers.
The community response filled the shelter’s needs. “I just got back from dropping off the donations,” Luque noted after loading supplies that nearly filled her car trunk and completely packed a shelter cart.
Community Connection and Local Impact
Evanthia Konnaris, a student at Bowdoin College, noted the contrast between campus dog sightings and the feline-focused neighborhood event. “I have a cat at home, and I really miss her,” Konnaris said. “I feel like on Bowdoin’s campus, you see so many dogs, but there’s no cat representation.”
The gathering also attracted prominent local figures, including Dr. Nirav Shah, best known for leading Maine through the COVID-19 pandemic as the director of the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention and for his recent gubernatorial bid. Shah and his wife attended as dog owners to support Midcoast Humane. “I am a dog person who is a tolerator of cats, and my wife is a dog person who is a lover of cats,” Shah explained. “But anything that raises awareness for animals in need and helps gather resources for them, we’re all there.”
Beyond animal welfare, Shah emphasized the core value of local placemaking. “It’s events like this that are actually, what a lot of community is built on,” Shah said. “It’s a kooky kind of thing, but it’s for a good cause. You get people showing up who maybe don’t know each other very well.”
Luque, who grew up as a Navy kid without permanent roots, shared that sentiment of building local ties. Since moving back to Brunswick in 2021 with her husband, she has actively sought ways to connect with neighbors. “I like meeting people, I want to know my neighbors, and I want to do my part to spread joy and help the town I’ve committed to living in,” Luque wrote in an email. Organizers plan to host another cat tour next year, expanding her partnership with Midcoast Humane.