Green Gifts for the Holidays –
Manatee Adoptions for All – it’s a Wrap!
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TAMPA, FL - July 19, 2010- Inspired by kids around the country wanting to do more to help other kids and animals affected by disasters like the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, Mahila Partnership launched a new program Mahila Kids, with the support of BJ's Wholesale Club (BJ's) and Tampa's Lowry Park Zoo. Together they are kicking off a supply drive on Saturday, July 24 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at BJ's Wholesale Club Town & Country, located at 7651 W. Waters Avenue, and from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m.at BJ's Wholesale Club New Tampa, located at 6290 Commerce Palms Drive.
As part of the Lowry Park Zoo-to-You ZooVentures program, the Zoo's animal ambassadors will be at BJ's and attendees will have the opportunity to experience an up-close animal encounter as well as receive information about how to get involved with Mahila Kids and important facts about protecting wildlife. "As a center for conservation of endangered wildlife and an educational resource for our community, Tampa's Lowry Park Zoo is pleased to partner with Mahila Kids and BJ's Wholesale Club to help generate awareness of the environmental issues affecting animals and their habitats around the world," said Tony LaForgia, Tampa's Lowry Park Zoo's Manager of Corporate Relations. "Understandably, many in our community are greatly cconcerned about wildlife ramifications from the oil spill in the Gulf, which serves as a reminder of the critical need to protect wildlife and wild places."
Mahila Kids is encouraging the community to hold additional collection drives to support Tampa's Lowry Park Zoo's conservation programs, including rescue and rehabilitation of Florida species such as manatees. The list of items needed is
available on the Mahila website at www.mahilapartnership.org/mahilakids.htm. The community can also make cash donations or purchase supplies from the list at one of the Tampa BJ's Wholesale Club locations listed above. These BJ's locations will have merchandise markers around their stores identifying items needed for the zoo and are also serving as a drop-off location for purchases and donations through August 6, 2010. "BJ's Wholesale Club is dedicated to supporting the communities in which we serve," said Laura Ferrario, Community Relations Specialist for BJ's Wholesale Club. "We are delighted to host this supply drive and hope the local community will join us in our efforts to fulfill the needs of our local partners dedicated to conserving wildlife." If you are not currently a member, BJ's is offering a complimentary one day pass to be used for shopping during the event.
About BJ's Wholesale Club: BJ's is dedicated to providing members with high-quality, brand-name food and merchandise at prices that are significantly lower than supermarkets, supercenters, department stores, drug stores and specialty retail stores. BJ's carries the most product variety of any wholesale club with more than 7,000 items, including supermarket-sized staples, USDA Choice meats and stock-up items. BJ's is the only wholesale club to accept all manufacturers' coupons and for greater convenience, offers the most payment options including EBT.
Headquartered in Natick, Massachusetts, BJ's Wholesale Club, Inc. is a leading operator of warehouse clubs in the eastern United States. The Company currently operates 189 clubs and 105 gas stations in 15 eastern states. Learn more and shop online at BJs.com or for exclusive content visit BJ's on Facebook and Twitter.
About Tampa's Lowry Park Zoo: Tampa's Lowry Park Zoo is operated by the Lowry Park Zoological Society, an independent 501(c)(3) charitable organization committed to excellence in education, conservation and research. Tampa's Lowry Park Zoo is accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA), and has been named the No. 1 zoo in America by both Parents magazine (2009) and Child magazine (2004). The Zoo is located at 1101 W. Sligh Avenue in Tampa, one mile west of I-275 (exit 48) and is open seven days a week, from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily, with extended hours on select nights during the summer. Parking is free. For more information, visit www.LowryParkZoo.com. Also find the Zoo on Facebook and Twitter.
About Mahila Kids: Inspired by Payson and Wynne and led by 9-year-old Hillary, Mahila Kids was started to raise money to benefit children and animals affected by disasters. Mahila Kids is now working with Tampa's Lowry Park Zoo and other Gulf Coast organizations dealing with the effects of the oil spill. By empowering our children, we can bring about leadership, inspiring ideas and positive social change.
Child Led Program Inspires Tampa Bay Organizations To Join Together To Protect Florida Wildlife Following Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill
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In the farthest northwest region of North America, Hannah Stiver attends college in Alaska, likes to cross country ski and knit, and is also the adoptive parent of Whiskers the manatee from Save the Manatee Club’s Blue Spring adoption program near Orange City, Florida. Hannah asked her mom to adopt Whiskers for her last Christmas. “My family & I moved to Daytona Beach, Florida, when I was eight, and we would go to Blue Spring to see the manatees,” says Hannah. “I was enthralled! Alaska has some pretty amazing animals too, but manatees will always be closest to my heart.”
An annual manatee adoption costs $25 and includes an adoption certificate, color photo of a real Florida manatee, biography, membership handbook, and newsletters throughout the year with updatedreports on the manatees in the adoption program. Shipping is free within the United States. A personalized holiday message comes with the gift adoption. And each new member who joins the Adopt-A-Manatee® program online for a $35 tax-deductible donation will also receive Save the Manatee Club’s special edition 2011 wall calendar, in celebration of the Club’s 30th Anniversary. There are 33 real manatees to choose from in the Club’s adoption programs.
Hannah, an art major in college, created a manatee out of wire rod in her sculpture class. “It’s about five feet long and is hanging from a tree by the art department. It wouldn’t fit in my dorm room,” she explains. “One manatee poster I’ve had for eleven years is from Save the Manatee Club and it features all the sirenians of the world. It has moved from Florida to Alaska with me.”
Much further south, in the Lone Star state of Texas, 11-year-old Beverly Barry dreams of one day becoming a marine biologist. Her mom, Bartlett, adopted Lorelei from the manatee adoption program at Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park for her daughter as a Christmas gift. She chose Lorelei because she was the only manatee the family had not yet adopted from Homosassa. “There’s nothing better than a manatee gift in our household.”
Manatees are listed as endangered at the international, federal, and state levels. More than 10% of the known Florida manatee population (estimated at around 5,000), has already died this year. Patrick Rose, Save the Manatee Club’s Executive Director says, “Manatees have been further jeopardized by the loss of more than 600 manatees so far this year, the majority most likely due to cold stress caused by Florida’s unprecedented cold winter. And the impact of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill is far from over. Because no one has seen a spill of this magnitude, we can only make educated guesses about the long-term damages that the oil spill and dispersants used could inflict on manatees and especially on their aquatic habitat.”
Save the Manatee Club, an international nonprofit conservation organization, was co-founded in 1981 by world-renowned singer/songwriter, Jimmy Buffett. Funds from the adoption program go toward emergency rescue response for sick and injured manatees, and for waterway signage, public awareness, research, and more.
For more information about adopting a real manatee this holiday season, contact Save the Manatee Club at 500 N. Maitland Ave., Maitland, FL 32751, call 1-800-432-JOIN (5646), or visit their web site at www.savethemanatee.org. Also, sign up for the Club’s free E-Newsletter and purchase unique manatee gifts at the Club’s gift catalog at http://www.savethemanatee.org/shop.
The popularity of eco-friendly holiday gift-giving is on the rise. Manatee adoptions from Save the Manatee Club are gifting options that gratify holiday shoppers twofold – it’s easy on the conscience and the pocketbook. And although the endangered manatees in the Club’s adoption program live primarily in Florida waters, ever-growing admiration for the charming marine mammals extends across the United States and well beyond. In fact, when someone adopts a Florida manatee, they are also helping to save manatees in West Africa, the Wider Caribbean, and South America, where Save the Manatee Club continues to expand rescue, research, and education efforts.
