Prior to the last 2 months, I had been volunteering at Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest for 4.5 years. I can easily say that it was the best way I spent my time! It was so incredibly meaningful for me that I decided, at 52 years old, to pursue a career change and am now a full time staff person! How lucky am I? So I compiled a list of reasons that YOU TOO should become a volunteer. We’d love to see your smiling faces 🙂
- Burrito
- Terry
- Foxie
- Annie
- Cy
- Jamie
- Missy
- Gordo
- Dora
- Mave
- Honey B
- Willy B
- Negra
- Lucky
- Rayne
- Diana
- JB
- Anna
- Dr.Erin
- Kelsi
- Grace
- Jenna
- Chad
- Katelyn
- Sabrina
- Ellen
- Krissy
- Deer families
- Marmots for days
- Raven shenanigans
- Frogs – you may have to save them from the playrooms (Negra will eat them!) **
- Snakes – no wait, that’s a different list!
- Volunteering is incredibly rewarding
- Free snacks!
- Raspberries – the kind you blow, not the kind you eat, also known as a Bronx Cheer
- The property is breathtakingly beautiful!
- Only one chimpanzee throws poop
- Bragging rights – your friends will be so jealous (which is why they should become volunteers, too!)
- We share 98.76% of our DNA with chimpanzees – so that makes us family
- Jamieween
- Trifecta Jubilee
- Enrichment prep parties – such as pumpkin carving for Jamieween
- Making chow bags (actually, that’s why WE want you to volunteer)
Volunteer Katie making chow bags
- Volunteering is FREE
- Friendship
- Strengthens our community
- Volunteers know the inside scoop – they’re part of the team
- Plenty of parking
- Troll toss with Foxie ***
- The sanctuary couldn’t do it without volunteers!
- Learn chimpanzee facts that you can use at cocktail parties (do people still go to cocktail parties?)
- Watching meal service from Mechanical Room 3
- Satisfaction gained through a job well done
- Witnessing sweet moments between chimps
- Dancing with Terry ***
- The opportunity to bond with another species
- Combats depression
- Taking walks around the hill
- Grooming ***
- Volunteers make the staff very happy – think Norm entering Cheers
- Tug-o-war with Burrito ***
- Most of the time, the spit flying at your face is just water
- Gain career experience
- Espresso machine
- Meet new people
- Negra kisses ***
- Camaraderie
- You can make a difference
- The rare opportunity to groom Missy ***
- Gardening
- We have ice!
- And air conditioning!
- Bipedal Annie
- You get to go home early!
- You become a more interesting person
- Lunch forages
- You’ll want chimp tattoos
- You can check out books from our library
- Cows
- Teeth clacking during grooming
- Chimp laughter
- Looking for enrichment outside of chimp house (finding old dolls/boots/magazines)
- Barn Kitty – look but don’t touch!
- The excitement of Cy’s group when we roll out the food cart for meals
- Acquiring chimp art through online auctions, and such (first to know)
- Burrito’s toes
- Lizard (Travis)
- Gordo/Rayne in a box
- Gatorade pools
- Willy B eating lettuce/bok choy/celery, and such
- Making forts **
- Making paper braids – just kidding, they’re a nightmare, but lots of enrichment is fun to make!
Volunteer Sarah S making firehose knots
- Annie bird noises and hair/face washing
- Otter pops
- Making nests **
- Dora’s head bobble
- It makes you happy!
- Watching the big boys display – gets your heart pounding!
- IT’S JUST PLAIN FUN!!!!!
Now that you are ready to fill out an application to volunteer, you need to know about the different levels of volunteer:
*Level I – tasks include doing laundry, washing dishes, preparing enrichment, lunch prep, putting produce away, etc. Please note, Level I volunteers do not interact with the chimpanzees, besides a polite head nod.
** Level II – in addition to Level I tasks, Level II volunteers assist in cleaning enclosures. Please note, Level II volunteers do not interact with the chimpanzees, besides a polite head nod.
***Level III – In addition to Level I and II tasks, Level III volunteers serve meals and engage in protected physical and non-physical interactions with the chimpanzees.
You can fill out an application to become a Level I or Level II volunteer. Trustworthy and dedicated volunteers are invited to train to become Level III volunteers – while all levels are rewarding, you and I both know that the real magic happens when you work to become a Level III volunteer. It’s so worth it!
WHO IS THE, ONLY, CHIMP WHO THROWS OOP?
The one in the picture (the OG Boss)
Jamie is the only one who throws feces!
Trust me, Krissy, in another life, I checked to see if you had a summer program for a couple of months. Unfortunately, I, like many other blog readers, don’t live close enough –otherwise I would be there in a heartbeat!
99 fantastic reasons!! Thanks, Krissy, for coming up with each one! If I lived within driving distance you can bet I would have already filled out an application to volunteer. A dream come true! I’ve even wondered if there was a way I could make enrichment or nut bags from home but figured the darn postage wouldn’t be money well spent. Oh well… for now I’ll live vicariously through your wonderful experience.
That picture of Jamie sitting and looking intense is just the best! Really captures her personality.
Lucky you, lucky chimps! :slight_smile:Enjoy it for long and even longer!:monkey_face::slight_smile::cow2::two_hearts:
If I were 25 years younger my application would have already been sent. Krissy, your list of 99 reasons to volunteer is fabulous. I hope you get a good response!! The Cle Elum area is beautiful and I make the drive over from Seattle several times a year. Next Saturday I will be visiting the sanctuary and hope that the chimps will be outside in all their glory.
Dear people.
There is a solution!!
EVERYBODY MOVE TO THE PACIFIC NORTH-WEST……?
You won’t regret it..beautiful region.
That would be the perfect solution! Unfortunately I can’t go back to winters at my age after 37+ years in Florida. :slight_frown:
Just great and destined to be a classic! Thank you!