Leo the Library cat, a big orange tabby and celebrity at the Glendale Community Library, died Wednesday. Glendale is flying its city flag at half-staff to honor the longtime resident of the library basement.
Leo followed a strict routine in the Village Square of this Cincinnati suburb: wake up in his basement suite in the library, grab lunch at the Bluebird Bakery, visit his many friends and sample dinner at Meritage Restaurant. His favorite meal was salmon, but he wouldn't say no to steak or chicken either, library volunteer Betsy Benn told The Enquirer.
At the library, Leo held the office of Mouser and Greeter.
"He made a position for himself here that didn't exist before and probably wouldn't again with any other cat," Benn said. "He was just very, very special. He truly loved people."
When she trained new volunteers, Benn said she told them to always open the door if the handle rattled but they couldn't see a person. That meant Leo was ready to come inside.
Leslie Moorhead, a Glendale resident, said she and her 3-year-old son, Leo, saw cat-Leo often at the playground.
"We go up there every day," Moorhead said. Finding Leo was a highlight for her son and his friend. "They all walk around meowing trying to find Leo the cat."
Moorhead said she and other Glendale parents are working out how to explain to their kids that Leo won't be around anymore
"It's gonna be a hard lesson for these kids ... Leo the cat was like a little boy trapped in a cat's body," Moorhead said.
Leo regularly attended monthly story time at the library, as well as yoga classes and the village's Concerts on the Green.
The only gathering he steered clear of, Benn said, was Barktoberfest, an annual fundraising event where residents brought their dogs.
The library buried Leo at one of his favorite spots, a side garden with a bird bath he loved to lay under. Benn said the community center will mark the spot with a memorial plaque or an engraved rock.
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