I was adding some items to our Amazon.com wishlist and it dawned on me that most blog readers probably don’t know too much about the working space for the human primates (staff and volunteers) at the sanctuary, so I snapped a couple of photos to show you so I can talk about some things that we’d really love to have.
We pride ourselves in taking good care of the chimps and giving them as much as we can on a modest budget, while always making improvements to the building and their lives. We are able to do this because we don’t give ourselves big salaries or buy fancy stuff, we rely on a terrific group of over thirty regular volunteers, and we get so much donated – from blankets to toys to produce to toilet paper (that last one is for the humans, in case you were wondering).
Most nonprofits earn a significant amount of their annual income in December, so we’ll soon be asking you to help us reach our year-end goals and we’ll have a special Chimp Cheer page on our website for those who give. If you would rather give gifts though, there are a few things we could use. Take a look at the photos below and visit our Amazon.com wishlist to see how you can put a smile on our faces.
Here’s a view of the kitchen area where we do all of the food prep for the chimps. Notice the worn floor mat and the lack of a coffee maker. We have a new kitchen mat on our wishlist. The carafe of our coffee maker broke a couple of months ago and I tried to do the most environmentally friendly thing by just replacing the carafe, but two ill-fitting carafes later and we still don’t have a working coffee maker. We don’t need anything fancy – I put a simple one on the wishlist. Or maybe you have a used one you’d like to donate? We don’t give caffeine to the chimps, but we’re okay with our own caffeine habits.
Here’s a view inside the fridge (and me waving to you in the reflection), which is on the other side of that ratty-looking mat. We wash all of the produce we get and then put it in bowls. I put a few more sets of bowls on the wishlist, trying to avoid the cheap plastic ones that break pretty quickly.
And here’s a view of the transition from the kitchen to the enrichment area (the shelves with all of the bins) and “office” (where the chairs are). Eventually it would be nice to have a larger freezer and another fridge, but we don’t have the room right now, so we make use of every possible storage space available.
Notice the precarious-looking pile of stuff next to the enrichment bins in the photo below. We could use a small shelving unit that fits so we can better take advantage of that space. I put a unit on the wishlist. We’d want the one that is 18″ deep x 24″ wide x 72″ tall.
Thanks to Jim Spencer, we have a lovely shed right outside the door. The shed stores enrichment too, and we switch out the bins once a week so the chimps’ toys don’t get too boring. We also keep some food, like nuts and dried fruit in the shed. We always welcome new bins! The specific ones we use are on the wishlist.
And here is the chimp house “office.” J.B. and I live in the house on the property and we’ve converted the master bedroom into additional office space (perhaps I’ll share those photos later), but this is where we make all of the videos and upload photos to the blog, among other things. The laptop we’re using is my old computer. The screen went out about a year ago, so we hooked it up to a monitor. We’ve been having some trouble with it and I’m afraid it doesn’t have much longer to live. We use iMovie to put our blog videos together, so we’d LOVE a new MacBook Pro with a screen that works. Not surprisingly, this is something you can get through Amazon.com too.
It’s difficult to see in this photo, but the small bin to the right above holds our cameras. I keep my Canon digital SLR camera here so we can get good shots of the chimps that we use for brochures, calendars, the website, etc. We have a basic canon PowerShot for video-taking (purchased for us last holiday season), which we all really like. Thinking about Young’s Hill, though, we’ll need something with a better zoom that takes higher-quality video. So, I’ve put an all-in-one Canon SLR camera with HD video capabilities on the wishlist. We can use our existing zoom lenses and get some amazing footage of the chimps on the hill.
There’s even more stuff on the wishlist and if you have any other ideas for gifts for the sanctuary and want to talk it over with someone, feel free to contact me or another staff member: [email protected] or 509-699-0728. Thanks!
thank you for these pics , it makes me appreciate all that you guys do for the cle elum 7 all the more ! i hope Santa brings you lots of the much needed things on your wish list 🙂 x
Cross the coffee pot off your list. I’ve got that one under control! (Will contact you by phone).
You were right when you said you make use of every inch of space. A mechanical engineer wouldn’t even be able to do a better job!
Thanx for sending these pics Diana. I too, had wondered about the goings on inside the actual day-to-day things.
Thanks, Linda! I removed the coffee maker from the list. Coffee-loving staff and volunteers will thank you!
As someone who had the pleasure and privilige to visit the sanctuary I was (and so was my husband) immediately struck at how small the kitchen work area/storage was for the humans. It was obvious that many many sacrifices and do withouts were common to make sure the chimps had all they need. It’s reallly quite an attestation to the devotion of the care givers and volunteers to the chimps that they make it work in such a small space in order that the chimps get whatever their hearts desire.
In the first picture, left of the sink, are those troll dolls being hung out to dry, so to speak? I checked out the expensive MacBook Pro, maybe this item could be something a bunch of us could contribute to, I could start it with $20. Would anyone else be interested, if it’s o.k. with the CSNW staff?
Our workspace wouldn’t be complete without a few troll dolls! Great idea to go in on the computer. Thanks, Candy!
You all need a good computer because that’s how you keep all of us informed and I consider that very important. I’ve said this before, but you all have the best chimpanzee sanctuary website around because of your blog, pictures and videos. You show us more than any of the other sanctuaries and it makes me feel like I’m really there, with all of you and the “7”. I feel like part of the family because I know what’s going on at CSNW and I thank you for that.
I sent off $25 for the MacBook Pro this morning.
I think shopping for the chimps will be fun. I believe a little something for the staff is in order too. You all have done so much for these wonderful animals and sacrificed so much. Best of all, you make sure their lives are enriched and full of love. No gift will ever be able to repay that but I would like for you all to know how grateful those of us who love these chimps are. Candy, put me down for $25 on the MacBook.
Awww, thanks, Theresa! Believe me, we’d be nothing without you all supporting us. I always say that the Cle Elum Seven have a way of attracting the best people.
oh man, I’m so sorry for breaking that coffee maker. seriously I’m probably the clumsiest caregiver you have. 😉 THANK YOU Linda for replacing it!
I doubt you are the clumbsiest caregiver, Debbie. We could put it to a vote 🙂 I have lots of bleach stains on my clothes from tripping over the foot-bath.
Ok maybe I’m just the most prone to drop things! 🙂 I am always accidentally dropping the chimps’ food, they must think I’m stupid! haha.
Oh, and, remember when we didn’t have the doggie bath thing for the toys, and when we used a bleach water spray bottle to disinfect them? Yep… I ended up with a couple pairs of pants with bleach spray marks all over them. I should have started a new style! haha.
Diana, put me down for $50 toward the new MacBook. Just let me know how best to get the money to you folks. You’re all awesome and the more chimp videos we get, the better and therefore you need the right equipment. Happy Holiday’s to everyone @ CSNW.
Thank you so much, Catherine!!
i SO wish i was closer, i’d be there helping all the time!
hope to be able to help w/ some wishlist items soon 🙂
It would be awesome to get a new stove/oven. I’m grateful for what we have, but that thing takes nearly a half hour to boil water! And by the way, I always forget to ask when I’m there, why do we have a giant green hand sitting on the counter? That thing creeps me out!
Yes, it’s not a very convenient stove top. The hulk hand was sent for the chimps, but it’s made of a material that Annie may like to chew on, so we’re using it as a cell phone holder 😉