Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest

Hope. Love. Home. Sanctuary for primates.

Fundraising

Giving Days and Days of Gifts

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Today’s theme: gifts, giving, and gifts given.

Before we get to today’s update, though, I want to remind everyone that Giving Day for Apes is this Tuesday! It’s not too late to set up your own fundraising page via the sanctuary’s Giving Day for Apes page (just click on the big “Fundraise” button to get started). To see pages that others have created, scroll down on our page and look under “Campaigns supporting this organization.” All donations made on any of those campaigns will go directly to the sanctuary and will be eligible for the cash prizes offered!

Of course, the special fundraisers aren’t the only times that our supporters make generous gifts to the sanctuary.

Earlier today, we posted the following message:

Mary Horton sponsored this special day of sanctuary for her mom and long-time friend of the chimpanzees, Vicki Fagerlee… Vicki, you make a lasting difference in the chimpanzees’ and cattle’s lives, helping us ensure their joy, well-being and comfort for all their days forward. We’re so grateful to have you as part of our chimp and bovine family. Happy Birthday, from all of us here at the sanctuary!

It may have been Vicki’s birthday today, but she has been the one buying gifts for the sanctuary lately. Last week, we received notice that someone purchased a new mirrorless digital camera from our Amazon Wish List. Shortly after, the device arrived at our front gate with all the accessories we need to keep taking photos for the blog. The new Canon RP is much newer, lighter, and versatile than the donated Canon Rebels we have been using, and it has many new features that we have yet to master. Today, I spent some time to tinker with the auto-focus settings, low-light capabilities, and preset modes, but it definitely feels like learning to take photographs all over again. This technology has advanced quite far over the last ten years, so we appreciate that Vicki is helping us to stay current. I can’t wait to see what content we can create with this generous gift, and I really can’t wait to share the final products with you all.

Annie
Foxie and Missy
Jody and Foxie
Burrito
Burrito

P.S. Even the newest cameras have a difficult time focusing on Burrito’s face when he plays chase and tickle like an absolute maniac. In this case, I think I focused on his tiny white nose hairs. I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Pant-Hoot Tutorial for Virtual HOOT! 2020

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If you received our e-newsletter last week, the phrase “pant-hoot tutorial” might be something you recognize as one of the survey questions asked to get a sense of how you want to participate in the Virtual HOOT! gala event. If you didn’t receive the e-news, you can sign up on our home page or on this page – just scroll down to the brown block where it says “subscribe to newsletter”.

While 50% of respondents replied that they would not participate in a pant-hoot contest, there seemed to me to be enough interest to force, I mean, encourage, J.B. to film himself pant-hooting (see video above).

We would really love your submissions – it would be super fun to show the videos to the chimps for their reactions. Maybe they should be the judges! You can check out what the winner will receive and the details for easy submission on the Pant-Hoot Contest page of Virtual HOOT! 2020.

Another interesting finding from the survey so far is 60% of respondents voted that we should set our fundraising goal for the virtual event at the same amount we had for the in-person gala, which was $200,000. I love that enthusiasm, and I hope we can get close to that amount! Our auction committee decided to be a bit more cautious, though still incredibly hopeful, with a goal of $150,000. That would go a long way towards funding care for the year and could even add to our expansion funds so we can continue building the greenhouses into the winter.

We’re just starting to add auction items, and we have a lot more things in store, so keep going back to the site to check out what’s new in the coming days!

The date of the actual virtual event is September 12th and is free for anyone to watch and participate. Bidding on auction items is also open to anyone and begins September 2nd.

We are going to hold a Zoom Happy Hour for a limited number of people who will get to join the chimpanzees live for a drink before the virtual event begins. Registration for the happy hour just opened, so register today!

Okay, stop reading and watch the tutorial a few more times, then send us your best, funniest, or most creative pant-hoot!

Happy Birthday to our Queen Negra!

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To know Negra is a true honor. She is unapologetically herself. To know who you are is a very important life skill. To have the ability to express yourself is also very important. Negra’s life has not been easy. However, Negra is a chimp who knows how she likes things and what she wants. Negra knows she loves pine-coco juice, lettuce, and chow. Negra as many of us know is the queen of comfort, she loves to make people dance for her, and when she wants to play she is not afraid to initiate it. When she feels like it, she gives the best kisses. Negra also gets to make those choices. She gets to choose where and how to make her nest, if she wants to go out on Young’s Hill, and she gets to express herself how she chooses. If Negra feels annoyed with her caregivers she can show her feelings, and trust us Negra is not afraid of holding back :).

June 13th, 2008 changed many lives. Most importantly everyday for 12 years seven chimps’ lives have gotten better each and everyday. And seven chimps became ten chimps. While our family may be growing, our visions and goals as a sanctuary have not. As Leslie Knope once asked in a TV show called Parks and Rec, “Are you better off now than you were a year ago?”. The answer is ABSOLUTELY and Negra is the perfect example of that. Happy Birthday to our Queen Negra. You are so very special to us.

If you missed the The Queen’s Brunch today you can still donate on our auction page. There are still a few second chance items left. Don’t miss out!

The Queen laying on her throne.

We had a huge forage out on Young’s Hill for lunch. Jody had arms full of cattails and a mouth full of roses. She also scored a big chunk of coconut. However, Jody got a little distracted near Negra. Negra looked over and to her dismay there was an abandoned coconut! Negra looked to be the happiest person in the world!

Negra with the coconut.

Missy zipped around the whole forage. I literally never saw her walking.

Jamie with arms and a foot full of lettuce.

Bubba enjoying his peppers.

Negra loving her lettuce too.

We hope you all had as much fun with the virtual auction and brunch as we did! I will leave you with these two images of Negra.

Endearing Photos of the Day and Special Sanctuary Supporters

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This post includes photos of the day along with information about this year’s HOOT! sponsors.

First, in case you didn’t see this little video on Facebook, take a look and share:

In reference to the video, the sanctuary continues to provide a wonderful and full life for the chimpanzees and is poised to expand only because of people who have supported the chimps over the years. We can’t say thank you enough, and we are excited to celebrate the ten-year anniversary of the arrival of Annie, Burrito, Foxie, Jamie, Jody, Missy, and Negra to the sanctuary!

HOOT! 2018 sponsors have made generous contributions this year to help with the costs of the event, and many have gone above-and-beyond throughout the years.

You can join them in making a donation at the HOOT! event on May 19th or right now if you’re unable to attend the event.

Before I get into the wonderful sponsors, below is a photo of Jody. One of the best things about the sanctuary is that the chimpanzees have choices about what they can do in any given moment. In this moment, Jody was choosing to relax in the greenhouse while Jamie was walking around the hill with volunteer Becca.

 

Now for some sponsors that make these choices possible:

HOOT! 2018 Happy Hour Sponsors are:

Tracy Headley
Tracy is a dedicated donor and Foxie Pal. Tracy is a great friend of the sanctuary and supports the chimpanzees in so many ways. We were lucky enough to bring her onto the gala committee for the last two HOOT! events, and she’s really helped this year with ideas and planning. It takes a lot of work to put on the event, and I’m so grateful for everyone who is on the committee!

Pam Lehnert & Marc Warner
Pam was one of our first chimp house volunteers and a key part of our gala for years, and Marc has always been willing to help with whatever creative project Pam comes up with to add to events. Pam was also an early participant in our Chimpanzee Pal program and continues to be a monthly Missy Pal donor. Pam and Marc now live full-time on “this side of the mountains” as they say around here, so they are the chimps’ neighbors too.

 

Poppoff Logo

If you’ve been following the blog for a while, you probably know we’re big fans of this family-owned business. Gay Dorsey was on our board at a critical point in time and we were so appreciative of her leadership and support. Poppoff, Inc has not only donated funds over the years, but has also given in-kind support with various construction projects. We can’t wait to see Poppoff, Inc out here when we start the foundation for Phase 1 of the expansion!

 


Pet Connection Magazine is the only free publication in the Puget Sound region that focuses on people, pets, community, and the connections we share with each other. It provides fresh content with each release and is dedicated to supporting and highlighting local businesses and nonprofits helping animals, including past articles on CSNW. You can see all of the locations where you can pick up the magazine and information about the latest issue on their website.

 

While Jody was relaxing and Jamie was walking, Burrito was inviting me to play. I think the photo below captures Burrito’s charming but mischievous qualities pretty well.

 

Here are a couple of Burrito fans who are also HOOT! sponsors (let’s face it, anyone who knows anything about Burrito becomes a fan pretty quickly).

HOOT! 2018 Chimpanzee Champion Sponsors are:

Julie Gralow and Hugh Allen are newer supporters, having been recruited and inspired by their friend Tracy Headley (see Happy Hour Sponsors above). Tracy is also a friend of their rescued dog Sheldon. Julie, a physician, has dedicated her life to fighting breast cancer and Hugh is an aesthesiologist–we’re big fans of anesthesiologists in general now that we’ve had first-hand experience with procedures requiring anesthesia on Burrito and Negra. We’ve utilized our on-site medical trailer for these procedures, and we are really looking forward to having a medical room connected directly to the building, which is part of the Phase 1 expansion. Even though Julie and Hugh have never seen the sanctuary in person or attended the gala (maybe next year!), they were Play Laugh Sponsors last year and increased their sponsorship level this year.



Martha Faulkner was introduced to the sanctuary through the HOOT! event and then became a board member a couple of years ago. In addition to her event sponsorships and donating a portion of her commission from real estate sales, she’s been infinitely helpful these last few years as we were investing in the future of the sanctuary buy acquiring land. Her advice and expertise helped the sanctuary purchase the original 26 acres from founder Keith and increase the total sanctuary land to 90 acres. Martha also uses her real estate business to help other nonprofits. Definitely get in touch with her if you are buying or selling property in and around Seattle because you can help the animal cause of your choice in the process!



We are SO LUCKY that we met the owner of Darwin’s Natural Pet Products, Gary Tashjian, at a community fair in Seattle several years ago. Darwin’s makes fresh and healthy pet food using produce from Charlie’s Produce and Gary immediately realized he could help the chimpanzees by donating produce to the sanctuary. Not only has this arrangement saved CSNW many thousands of dollars in the last several years, but it has provided the chimpanzees with wonderful and nutritious food. All seven of the chimpanzees are well-beyond middle age, and keeping them healthy is a top priority. Big thanks goes to Gary, Darwin’s and Charlies Produce for doing just that.

 

Burrito, the consummate lover of food, was really pulling out all of the stops to get me to play, including “kissing” through the caging in the greenhouse:

Obviously, I had no choice but to stop taking photos and play with him. He was being pretty goofy–throwing a blanket around and laughing. And that’s a perfect segue to the next sponsor level!

 

Big thanks also to HOOT! 2018 Play Laugh Sponsors:

Merritt & John Atwood

Melanie Kelsey

 

In addition to all of these featured sponsors, we have had many more supporters who have donated at amounts less than the $500 Play Laugh level. Every single donation is appreciated!

To round out the photos of the day, here’s Negra, who, like Jody, was lying on the “top shelf” of the structure in the greenhouse. To get this photo, I moved a bench over so I could stand on it and be eye-level with the chimpanzees. Negra thought I should also dance while I was up there, which of course I did. I was stomping around on the bench and she was nodding her head in appreciation.

I love this job.

HOOT! Sponsor Tracy Headley

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This is the second in a series of blog posts highlighting sponsors of the HOOT! 2017 Spring Fling gala. You can see the first in the series here.

We are sharing HOOT! 2017 sponsors so everyone can get to know the people behind the generosity.

So, today is all about Tracy!

Tracy Headley is a Happy Hour Sponsor, which is fitting, because she brings happiness to us at the sanctuary.

She first became involved with Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest when her friend Shawn (on the left in the photo above) invited Tracy and her partner Bruce (on the right in the photo) to the sanctuary. Shawn had won a visit to CSNW at another auction and thought Tracy and Bruce would be interested in joining him. In Tracy’s words, “That day started my love affair with seven unique and wonderful chimps.”

In more of her words, Tracy shares what that love affair has been all about:

The blog posts have allowed me to watch the chimps grow to live a life closer to what they should have lived all along.  This past year I have delighted in watching Annie, at 42 years old, discover her moxie. To see the look on her beautiful & serene face as she explores Young’s Hill-joy!  I have learned so much about chimps, and these seven in particular, from the wonderful blog posts.

Tracy is generous throughout the year, always giving donations for chimpanzee birthdays and other fundraising drives, but here is why Tracy specifically chooses to support sanctuary events with her donations:

This is our 5th year attending, and 4th year as a sponsor.  I try to budget for HOOT!, and my sponsorship is part of my budget.  It allows me to give some of my donation early, hoping that it can help with some of the party planning costs.  Plus, it is the best party of the year.

I asked Tracy who her favorite chimpanzee is, and I just love her answer:

I want to be more like Foxie.  She is fun, silly, intuitive, and a loyal friend.  I LOVE Foxie. Really there is something to love and admire about all seven.  I think I am more like Jody.  I like things orderly, and I care deeply about the well being of my family and friends. 

Here’s a photo of Foxie and Jody out exploring together.

We agree, Tracy does care deeply about the well being of her friends, and that shows in the support that she has given to the sanctuary over the years.

Thank you, Tracy, for being such a great friend to all of the chimpanzees and the humans at Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest!

Fall in Love with Foxie

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For the Share the Chimp Love fundraising this year, we are seeking new Chimpanzee Pals (and other donations!) for all of the chimpanzees, and we’re producing videos of each of them so you can get to know them better (Foxie’s video is at the end of this post).

Last night, supporter Monica Best joined an elite group of donors by sponsoring all seven chimpanzees! The heart is starting to fill!

heart filling

Foxie’s video was a really fun montage to put together! Foxie currently has 35 Pals. Will you be her next Chimpanzee Pal?

Learn more about Sharing the Chimp Love.