Gerald, Boonah’s Town Cat, passed away on Wednesday.

Even this most stately and cossetted of felines could not defy the wearisome passing of time.

He came to town 13 years ago in the company of another. Both were cruelly abandoned, both showed signs of coming from a less than loved environment, both were fortunate to have found their way to the steps of Bartholomew and Co.

The result was life changing.

One was adopted by a local family and so too was Gerald but he was destined to become more than a ‘one family cat’.

We offer the republishing of his story which was written by Wendy Creighton for the Fassifern Guardian in June 2017 as a way of giving readers an understanding of why the passing of Gerald, The Town Cat, is mourned by more than the staff of Bartholomew and Co.

Fassifern Guardian, June 2017 …

If you walk down Boonah's High Street often enough, you've probably seen Gerald. Gerald knows you, but do you really know Gerald? This, is his story...

He is a stately cat,
He must have a stately name,
We shall call him Gerald
And here he shall remain …

Some know him as the butcher’s cat, others as the black and white moggie who basks on the High Street footpath, others know him as the baker’s cat or the jeweller’s cat and some as the town cat.

But in truth, most know him as Gerald the Bartholomew and Co mascot, who commands more attention than your average moggie.

Gerald has his own Facebook page, has had his portrait painted and receives weekly fresh meat indulgences from his many fans.

But Gerald’s life has not always been so easy.

Our knowledge of Gerald’s story begins about 10 years ago.

One weekend, he and a fellow moggie were dumped outside Bartholomew and Co’s Real Estate establishment.

Why they were left to fend for themselves is unknown but the staff took pity on them.

“My daughter took one of them,” says Judy O’Reilly.

But the other one was carrying injuries from one too many alley fights.

He needed food, he needed care and he needed a name.

Despite his far from prepossessing looks, he had a classy mien.

“He is a stately cat so he must have a stately name … we shall call him Gerald.”

A local vet, the late Mark Gallant, was contacted and for a tiny fee, he repaired Gerald’s injuries, dislodged a gang of freeloading fleas and cured him of his wild ways by desexing him.

Gerald resided at Bartholomew’s during his recuperation but it was decided he needed a regular home.

A family at Roadvale offered to adopt him and he became the housecat for a couple who offered him an abundance of care and concern.

“But every time the owners went away for a few days, despite detailed arrangements for his care while they were gone, Gerald would walk all the way back into Boonah and turn up on our doorstep,” Judy says.

This happened several times to the extent that Gerald’s owners started to leave him at Bart and Co every time they planned a short term exit from the district.

Ultimately, it was decided that Gerald should remain in town.

And so Gerald became the Bartholomew and Co mascot and nowadays some even call him the CEO or so an obscure post on the Bartholomew and Co website would have us believe.

But Gerald knows where the real power resides.

“His favourite place is on the mat in front of Roy’s door,” Judy says, “Gerald knows who is boss.”

And Gerald earns his keep.

He offers seat warming services in Tony Moller’s office, greets customers at the front door, acts as a paperweight on the desks in the main office and welcomes Rodney Stenzel when he opens the shop each morning although some suggest that the greeting includes a reminder that it is morning and therefore feeding time.

But readers should not be concerned that Gerald lacks food.

In the far back reaches of the main street premises, Gerald has his own woven cane cat bed with a soft pillow and beside it lies a food bowl and a well stocked pantry.

“Gerald never goes without,” Judy assures me. “My daughter comes in and feeds him when the shop is closed and on a Monday morning I have to step over all the food that’s been left for him by his fans who live in the town.”

And Gerald has many, many fans.

“People come in regularly to pat him, to talk with him and to check on his well-being.”

And should Gerald ever feel a lack of attention, all he has to do is lounge on the footpath where he quickly becomes the centre of attention.

A gentle stroll up the street takes him to the butchers where ‘Gerald’s bowl’ awaits him beside the door, a few steps further along and he comes to his bowl outside the bakery. A wander in the opposite direction, and he is soon inside the jeweller's shop where he can comport himself on a comfy chair.

Such is his fame that artist Angus McDiarmid chose to paint his portrait. The result was a stately profile of Gerald overlooking his main street domain. According to all reports and some photographic evidence, Gerald was pleased with the result.

Life for Gerald is now one of ease and adulation … so different from his rough and ready beginnings … but so it should be for the moggie who holds the affectionate title as ‘The Town Cat’.