Gorilla Haven has
received no
money from the zoo world, government or grants for the construction and operation of this world-class
facility or for the care of Joe and Oliver -- to date, 100% of the costs
have been borne personally by Steuart and me. This amazes a lot of
people, but we remind them this was always our Field of Dreams – if we built it, they
would come … and they did! Although not everyone from the zoo/gorilla world
has visited personally, we’re hoping to get them here to see first hand,
what 100% of our visitors agree is an amazing project, which defies
description and must be experienced to get the full understanding of what
we’re doing and (more importantly) why we’re sinking our entire life’s
savings into it.
The plan was always that we would build GH and then the zoo world would be charged a per diem for future residents to help offset operating costs. We're not the gazillionaires people think we are, sadly, nor do we have rich relatives ... This project represents our life's work.
When we embarked on this project some eight years ago, even after we had set aside what was projected to be more than enough to cover the construction costs, the remaining funds were sufficient to create an endowment fund to ensure that our own part of the deal was covered well into the future. But sometimes even the best plans are disrupted by unforeseen circumstances.
I’m not a tire company, but I’m GoodRich: Yuppies Gone Good
One of the reasons we agreed to do the Creative Loafing story was we’re going to have to start thinking about fund raising. We have never asked the public for donations in the past, in spite of being a 501(c)(3) non profit corporation. This will have to change.
Steuart’s success as a businessman comes not only from his brilliant programming skills, but also from his financial savvy. He does rather conservative financial projections years in advance to determine the road we take, and for the last few years, that road has been quite smooth - so much so that when donations were made to Gorilla Haven in the past, it was possible for us to give 100% away to other projects working to help the environment and wildlife. That was a fun time … a lot like our Yuppie years, but more so, since we were spending money on others, not ourselves, which is much more rewarding.
But recently, with skyrocketing construction costs and operating expenses, we’ve been forced to draw from funds originally earmarked for the endowment. Because of this, the writing is on the wall, and as we prepare for the future we realize:
We will need to fund-raise...
Our wealth is in our land and the Gorilla Haven facility itself – not in the bank or in stocks and bonds. Steuart’s business model has drastically changed too, so our income has dropped significantly. So costs are up and income is down. Just like everyone else on the planet.
Some people send money to the Dewar Wildlife Trust (which funds Gorilla Haven) for other projects, like our beloved friends in Sierra Leone at the Tacugama Sanctuary, and those funds still get to Bala and his chimps in their entirety. In fact, PayPal takes a commission, so if you donate $10, we only get $9.31. But we still send Bala $10 and tell him it’s from you. This won’t change. But now, unrestricted donations will go to help Gorilla Haven’s operating/construction expenses and to replenish the endowment fund.
So, if you can donate,
please click here and remember: 100% of
what you send will really help. If you know any corporate sponsors
who could help - maybe have a building named after them
- please let us know! Bonz and
Pitchou villas are still under construction, as is the Group Building and
they could use a donor to help offset the steel/construction costs which
have more than tripled since we built Joe’s villa.
Work on the two remaining villas continues, but we've put the huge Group Building (right) "on hold" until the long range funding issues are resolved.