We have a whole heck of a lot to be thankful for here at Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest. We have an amazing team of staff, board members, and volunteers, and a huge network of supporters spread all over the world.
It would take us years to highlight each donor (wouldn’t that be fun, though!). Trying to be realistic, I decided to take this week of Thanksgiving to tell, in brief, the stories of a few different donors as representatives of the many ways that people support the chimpanzees.
With seven days and seven types of donors it seems appropriate to also highlight the seven chimpanzees while I’m at it, right?!
So, today, on day one, I’m starting the week in a big way by highlighting Bruce Davidson and Burrito.
We were first introduced to Bruce Davidson over two years ago via the nephew of long-time donors Margaret Parkinson and Karen Creason. Bruce had begun thinking about getting his will in order and wanted to designate a large portion of his estate to go towards a nonprofit. Here’s Bruce in his own words,
When I saw the original KCTS piece on the sanctuary years ago I was struck by the “audacity” of a relatively small group of people with relatively limited funds dedicated to doing what they could to make a difference. “How about we start out by saving seven? Seven. That’s seven who won’t hurt anymore.” The Audacity of Hope indeed.
Bruce has visited the sanctuary twice and this last summer we were able to show him the additional parcels of land that we had acquired and were working on acquiring (more news on that soon!). Here’s what I didn’t realize would happen with a donor whose focus is entirely on a potentially large gift that will happen (hopefully) far in the future: it has been a huge source of motivation. We know that Bruce has put the trust of his legacy in the sanctuary, and we are inspired to live up to that profound level of trust.
If the need still exists, we all want the sanctuary to live far beyond our lifetimes, and Bruce is going to be a part of making this possible. Isn’t that amazing?!
If you’re curious about becoming a legacy donor, you can check out this page on our website: www.chimpsnw.org/you_can_help/single/leave-a-legacy.
So, Burrito…
This morning when I entered the chimp house, Burrito greeted me with the usual mix of, let’s call it “assertiveness” and playfulness that is his typical greeting towards me. This means that he first needs to get out a bang or a spit towards me before he gets down to the business of play. He had a big pair of plastic tweezers that he handed/pushed towards me, which I proceeded to use as a back-scratcher, finger-grabber, and stomach-tickler.
It’s just a fact that, while Burrito can be downright intimidating:
there is no way to resist his charm:
The ripple effect, with seven chimpanzees at the center, encircled by a compassionate caring staff and passionate volunteers, and countless generous supporters — everyone connected because of those seven amazing chimp people. It must be uplifting to be surrounded by so much positive energy and love.
And I feel grateful to be able to see handsome Burrito, intimidating and/or charming he melts my heart and makes me smile from within.
Beautifully put, Kathleen!
What a big heart Mr. Bruce has!! But then the chimps are living in a galaxy filled with thousands of big hearts, each big enough to make space for more stars pretending to be chimpanzees. What happiness.
I love this sentiment, Francoise!
When I first discovered the existence of the CSNW earlier this year, the first resident I saw and learned about was Burrito. As seen in that first video, he was playing with one of his servants; although I didn’t know it at the time, he was laughing, too. Like all of his friends, Burrito is so charming and endearing. I look forward to visiting this blog every day to read about and see new pictures of them in their mountainside home.
I’m so glad that you found out about Burrito and the sanctuary, Tobin! It means a lot to us that you visit the blog every day. Happy Thanksgiving!