The cat that had been appointed stationmaster at a Japanese railway was mourned by rail workers at a large funeral and given the title of "honorable eternal stationmaster."

Tama died of heart failure early in June. The calico was well-known for bringing tourism dollars to the Kishigawa railway line and saving it from bankruptcy.

A Shinto-style funeral was held for the newly-anointed Shinto goddess on Sunday. More than 3,000 people attended, according to The Guardian. Tama will be enshrined in a nearby cat shrine in July, according to The Independent.

Tama joined the staff of the Kishi station in 2007. She was appointed stationmaster and given a custom-made stationmaster's cap and jacket. Mitsunobu Kojima, the president of Wakayama Electric Railway, said that appointing Tama as stationmaster was an excuse to keep the cat at the station. "But she was really doing her job," he said, according to The Independent. "Tama-chan really emerged like a savior, a goddess. It was truly my honor to have been able to work with her."

During her tenure, Tama brought an estimated 1.1 billion yen ($8.9 million) to the local economy, Kojima said, according to The Independent.

Another calico cat, Nitama, has served as apprentice stationmaster, and is expected to take over Tama's duties.