We’re cat lovers and allies.
Neighborhood Cats Network is a passionate, all-volunteer 501(c)(3) nonprofit on a mission to transform the lives of homeless community cats across Western New York, with a focus on Monroe, Wayne, and Ontario Counties. Through our lifesaving TNVRM (Trap-Neuter-Vaccinate-Return-Manage) program, we compassionately reduce stray cat populations by preventing reproduction, while supporting and managing cat colonies with care and strong community partnerships.
Our comprehensive Cat Cabin Program provides insulated winter shelters and secure feeding stations; the Food Pantry Program, supports dedicated caregivers with vital food resources; TNVRM in Action, delivers essential spay/neuter and veterinary services; and our Education Initiative, empowers the public and caregivers with the knowledge to care for community cats responsibly.
From building cabins to fostering community collaboration, we’re not just helping cats, we’re leading a compassionate revolution in their care. We believe every cat deserves to be healthy, warm, and loved—even in the harshest winters—and every community has the power to be part of the solution.
Board of Directors
Marlies Sullivan
President
Marlies Sullivan is the Executive Director of Leadership Initiatives at the University of Rochester, with a focus on professional fundraising. Since 1990, she has been passionately involved in animal rescue, beginning as a volunteer at the Bridgeport Animal Shelter in Connecticut. She later served as the town-appointed chair of the Oxford Animal Shelter in Oxford, CT, where she led the Dog Days of Oxford Event, a major tri-state fundraiser dedicated to helping homeless cats and dogs and rebuilding the shelter (2000-2011). From 2018 to 2023, Marlies served as Vice-President and Director of Fundraising at Pet Pride of NY, a no-kill cat sanctuary in Victor, NY. During her tenure, she successfully raised over $1.2 million and managed an expansion project that tripled the sanctuary's capacity, resulting in a dramatic increase in cat adoptions from 125 in 2018 to 850 in 2023. In addition to having five cats and two dogs of their own, Marlies and her husband Chris manage eight cat colonies in Victor, NY. Over the past seven years, they have constructed and donated over 150 insulated wooden cat houses to various cat rescue organizations and colony managers. They have extended their impact by conducting Zoom training sessions on building insulated cat houses for out-of-state rescues and training local rescues to build emergency shelters.
Jean Bidlack
Treasurer
Dr. Jean Bidlack is Professor and Associate Chair of the Department of Pharmacology and Physiology at the University of Rochester, School of Medicine and Dentistry. Her biomedical research focuses on medications development for treating drug abuse. Jean has held leadership roles in non-profit scientific societies. In 2004-2005, Jean was President of the Society on NeuroImmune Pharmacology, Inc. From 2004 to 2012, she was Treasurer of the International Narcotics Research Conference, Inc. Jean is a lifetime cat owner and treasures helping all cats. She is a former Treasurer at Pet Pride of New York, Inc. Jean and her husband, Carl, are proud parents of Tux, a brilliant and friendly tuxedo cat.
Mary Delton
Secretary
Mary Delton got her first cat when she started her academic career at Mount Holyoke College because she thought it would be nice to have "someone" to come home to. That was cat #1. While at MHC, Mary adopted a stray, Jellybean, Cat # 2. After marrying Bob Boeckman, and moving to Oakland U in Michigan, Mary would bring Cat #2 into the lab on weekends. Cat #3 was an abandoned cat that wandered the college campus and eventually into Mary's office where he ate some of the cat food that she kept for the weekend. He then went to sleep under her desk. A quick phone call to Bob and that cat came home. After moving to Rochester, NY; Bob and Mary continued to accrue cats. Some were adopted from shelters, and some were strays that found their horse barn. Many of those strays started out as barn cats but became beloved house cats. The number of cats that have been in the family since 1971 now totals 43. Bob has passed but Mary still has 5 loving felines ages 11 - 21 (all of whom were initially strays). Mary finished her career at Kodak where she did research in the Biosciences, Color Negative, and Color Paper divisions. While Bob was the President of Pet Pride of NY Inc, Mary designed and maintained their website.
