Homeless Man Saves Cat Thrown From Moving Car In Woodbridge

WOODBRIDGE, NJ — In her 20+ years working at the Woodbridge Animal Shelter, shelter manager Heather Campione has just about seen it all.

But even she was struck by what she witnessed Thursday morning:

At around 4 a.m. Thursday, someone threw this cat, pictured above, from a moving car. This happened right near the Woodbridge QuickChek on Main Street. The entire thing was witnessed by a homeless man who happened to be out at that moment.

"He said he didn't think the car was going that fast, but yup, they just threw the cat from the moving car," she said. "He saw the whole thing."

Campione said the man ran over to see if it was OK. Miraculously, the cat was perfectly fine, without a scratch, a living proof to its "nine lives" reputation.

So the man, estimated to be in his late 20s to early 30s, turned around and walked off.

That's when the cat, a male, started following him.

"He said the cat just started following him and wouldn't leave his side. He told me he bought him two cans of food at the QuickChek and then brought him to the shelter. I get in around 7:30 every morning and there he is holding this cat in his arms."

The man "looked as if he could use a hot shower and a good night's sleep," said Campione. "He told me he was homeless and didn't really have the money to buy $4 worth of food, but he bought it for him anyway. He said he was unable to keep the cat due to being homeless."

Campione put the cat in a crate. When she returned to the lobby, the young man was gone. Now she's very eager to find him.

"I didn't even get his name. First, I just wanted to reimburse him for that four dollars," she said. "But I also just want to see if I can or the town can give him some assistance. A place to sleep, a job, some food. Anything. There are a lot of services the town (of Woodbridge) can offer."

Once she posted about the incident on Facebook Thursday, she's now had "a group of people who really want to find this man. Members of the public have been contacting the shelter. I don't know what they want to give him, whether it is to start a GoFundMe or what, but people really want to find him. We mostly want to thank him."

Campione said she will be going to the QuickChek on Main Street later Friday: "The girls who work there are pretty kind; they know everyone who comes in. I really think I'll be able to find him."

"It's both sides of the coin in life," she mused. "And the ugly people and the good people always seem to be in the same place at the same time."