Today is the sixth day of thanks highlighting seven different donors and their seven ways of donating + the seven chimpanzees at the sanctuary!
Today I give thanks to major donor Karen Emmerman Mazner and I share some photos of the always busy Missy.
For a recap of the first five posts, day one featured legacy donor Bruce Davidson + Burrito, day two featured event donor Kathy Cochran + Annie, day three featured recurring donor Julie Olson + Jody, day four featured challenge and competition donor Monica Best + Negra, and yesterday, day five, featured wish list donor Vicki Fagerlee + Foxie.
We were thrilled to have Karen as our honoree at this year’s HOOT! gala, and she gave the best speech that explained why she decided to give a large contribution towards the Bring Them Home Campaign for Expansion. Here’s just a bit of what she said (it still gives me goosebumps):
If you’re a person who, like me, tears up when watching the videos of Foxie with her Troll dolls, Burrito being goofy, and Jamie bossing everyone around and you want more Foxies, Burritos, and Jamies to live out their lives with Troll dolls, goofiness, and bossing humans around then please join me in supporting CSNW’s efforts to bring more chimpanzees home to sanctuary.
I want more chimpanzees to know that their lives have changed for the better because they feel it in their new environment, in the people who care for them, and in the grass beneath their feet. They feel it every time they say “no†and a human says “ok, your body belongs to you†instead of “I’m doing it anyway.â€
Karen has put a lot of trust in us to fulfill our shared goal of providing a home for more chimpanzees. She knows that we’ve faced some headwinds in our efforts towards this goal. We were really hoping that 2017 would be the year that we would welcome more chimpanzees to CSNW, but we are okay working on a different timeline. We remain determined to do whatever we can to help the remaining chimpanzees in laboratories find their sanctuary home. We are eager to break ground for the Phase 1 construction of the expansion next year, which will benefit the seven chimpanzees already here in addition to preparing for more chimps. Karen’s donation will make that possible.
Missy seemed like an appropriate chimpanzee to feature with this post. She takes full advantage of all that the sanctuary has to offer. Obstacles simply do not deter her – she’ll find a way around them or just conquer them.
Young’s Hill, the chimpanzees two-acre habitat, was named after past major donors Karen and Don Young, who donated a large gift to get the hill construction started, in addition to other large gifts for other projects like the greenhouse and the veterinary clinic trailer.
Missy loves Young’s Hill. She especially seems to enjoy the first exploration of the day. I tried to get some photos of Missy on the hill yesterday morning. This is always a challenge, because she is usually a blur of motion. She ran, climbed, and swung from one structure to another – leaving virtually nothing untouched.
She would stop very briefly when she reached a destination, quickly survey her surroundings, and then leap away again to continue her exploration.
Missy! Not sure I know anyone who loves life with such exuberance. And no one has a cuter bod.
Need to get her a Fitbit!
Ah, so that explains the comparative dearth of photographs of Missy: she is just too exuberant exploring Young’s Hill. That is a very good reason, indeed.
To reply to myself, may I add the words of the early 20th-Century Primatologist, Robert Yerkes: “One chimpanzee is no chimpanzee.” He was alluding to the way that chimps are highly social animals. I seldom think of Missy without thinking of her socializing with one of her friends. Whether she is sharing a pumpkin with Jody, holding hands with Negra during a nap, or playing “Ring Around the Annie” with Foxie, I’ve no doubt that Missy makes an indispensable companion. I am glad that the residents can enjoy each other’s companionship.
So wonderfully put. I really love that you “get” Missy so well, Tobin!