SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- The Meow Mission is holding a “Cram the Van” Food Drive next Saturday, April 27 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the South Bend PetSmart South Bend on East Ireland Road.

The Meow Mission is located in St. Joseph County and is an all-volunteer nonprofit that practices and promotes trapping, neutering, and returning cats.

Organizers are hoping to “cram the van” with hard cat food for their registered "cat colony caretakers."

The nonprofit provides more than 500 pounds of dry cat food free each month to caretakers whose colony cats the organization has neutered through their Trap/Neuter/Return (TNR) program.

"Our mission is to humanely and proactively reduce the free-roaming cat population through practicing Trap/Neuter/Return," said Jodi Aker, President of The Meow Mission.

"Michiana is a compassionate, animal-loving community. Countless families across our region feed these community cats out of the kindness of their hearts. These cats are either born in the wild, or discarded or lost house pets who no longer have a home. These cats are often found in low-income neighborhoods and cared for by people who are already financially strapped or who are elderly or disabled and on a fixed income. When our caretakers, who have already taken responsibility for having their colonies spayed and neutered through our TNR program, need a little help to feed their hungry cats, we cannot turn away. It's not enough to fix these cats, we have to make sure they have enough food too."

They will be accepting any brand of hard cat food at the event, but if you cannot attend, you can still donate on their website or send a check to PO Box 192, Mishawaka, IN 46546.

The Meow Mission also has permanent donation drop-off locations at:

• South Bend Animal Resource Center, South Bend
• ABC Clinic of Pet Refuge, South Bend
• Kryder-Harr Veterinary Clinic, Granger
• For Pet's Sake Grooming, South Bend
• Kalon Hair Lab, Mishawaka
• Buwa's Body Shop, Mishawaka

"The Meow Mission is an all-volunteer Trap/Neuter/Return nonprofit that has neutered more than 11,500 of Michiana's free-roaming cats since its inception in 2011, providing caretakers with low cost spay/neuter services for their colonies," organizers said "They rely on donations and fundraising events to support their cause."