Its time once again to put out the welcome mats for our newest members! Many of you are already familiar with the wonderful photographer, Trina Dopp, as pixelmama on Flickr (https://flickr/photos/pixelmama/). Her images really are stunningly gorgeous. Even though her shots are going to make mine look like babirusa poop, Im super excited that she found us and asked to join the group. Kristen Barclay is a keeper at the Childrens Zoo and has told me that she truly appreciates being able to follow so many of the Zoos other animals through our posts and photos. I cant tell you how much that means to me. It completely reinforces my feelings about how much our group has grown into something that matters to so many. A very patient and understanding Michael Sixtus is an interpretive volunteer at the Zoo and a friend of Helenes to boot. So often while the keepers are busy caring for the animals, volunteers like Michael (and Helene) are the Zoos ambassadors and educators to the public. It cant be overstated how important these amazing people are in them giving of their time. I had a fun conversation with Amy Thompson Adams, who works in the Zoos HR department and who has been admiring our photos, about joining the group. Im so glad that she finally said yes. Unfortunately she now knows that I may or may not occasionally wear a coconut bra and grass hula skirt. No questions, please. Im also really stoked to be welcoming Katrina Rohr as a new member. Katrina is an Africa Tram driver and guide at the Safari Park and no matter how many times I ride the tram, it always amazes me how much of an affect the guides have on so many people, especially all the kids who soak in all the information that guides like Katrina present about the importance of wildlife conservation. I can thank Helene once more for introducing me to this rounds final two new members of the group. Pamela Ellen Hughes is local, a frequent Zoo visitor, and a photographer, so she fits the group criteria perfectly. Plus she is really nice, so bonus for us. Her daughter, Cameron Ishee (who is also very nice), is an intern at the Institute for Conservation Research up at the Beckman Center and creates amazing conservation projects using video, which I hope she can eventually share bits of with us here. And both Pam and Cameron already have their buttons, so theres no turning back. Each time I add more members I keep thinking that the group could not get any cooler. And each time I am proven wrong. Thank you all for requesting to join the group and for making me feel oh so proud of what we are becoming!
Posted on: Mon, 19 May 2014 04:28:33 +0000