Change for chimps — obstacles to opportunities
by Gina Roitman
Winter 2001 newsletter
In one Chinese dialect, the word obstacle translates to opportunity. As children, we innately believe this to be true. There is something remarkable about the way a child looks at the world and sees so few barriers. Free of negativity, children believe, and often prove, that they can do anything.
The Rubic's Cube has always been a great example of that. Hand one to a child with the instructions to match up the colours and they begin almost immediately. It's fun. It's a challenge. There is no ego involved. But ask the same of an adult and you see the brow instantly furrow and the silent objections sprout like weeds. The go something like this: This is really difficult. It's very complicated. I'm not good at these sort of things. I'm going to fail this test.
Innocence just sees a world of possibilities.
In Calgary, a determined seven-year-old, Jessica Bonner, and 26 of her Grade Two classmates at Varsity Acres Elementary School formed Change for Chimps and began the arduous task of fundraising by painting pictures, rocks and posters to sell and by also collecting change out of their piggy banks. The results were outstanding. In less than a month, they raised $911.46 under the guidance of their teacher, Linda Somers. That was last spring.
This past December, we received another surprise from Varsity Acres Elementary School. Maureen Clifford's Grade 4 class sent us donations that totaled more than $2,200, an incredible Christmas gift for the chimps at Fauna.
To raise the money, these amazing young people created a presentation about Fauna and the chimps who live there, and took it to two corporate offices. As a result, they received a total of $715 from employees who work for Yorkton Securities and $1,310 from employees who work for BMO Nesbitt Burns. They added to this $30 from recycling and an additional $150 from a "Change for Chimps" jar they kept in the classroom.
The "Change for Chimps" slogan was an idea also used by Donna Slemko's class at Brentwood Elementary, another Calgary school. This class created wonderful posters with colourful artwork (included in the last Fauna News) to promote the Fauna Foundation and raise awareness for chimpanzees.
For all of these young people, it only took concern for the welfare of others, some initiative and the belief that they could do something...because they didn't know they couldn't! With such fundamental tools, the three classes in Calgary have raised more than $3,000, now earmarked for the Fauna Sunshine Fund to purchase three bar-less, chimp-proof windows in the new extension.
More than that, however, these children have shed some light on how easy it is to overcome obstacles when we see them as opportunities to make the world a better place for all living creatures.
Editor's note: In June of 2001, Gloria Grow, Diana Goodrich and Samantha Hellman travelled to Calgary to meet these three very special classes and do a presentation in acknowledgement for outstanding efforts of these students on behalf of the Fauna Foundation. To read more about this story, see the Calgary Herald article Girl Rallies Students to Rescue Chimps.
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update
by Gloria Grow
Spring 2004 newsletter
Jessica Bonner, one of my wonderful young friends from Calgary stopped by with her family this summer for a short visit. A few years back, Jessica, with the help of her classmates, teachers, parents, and the community, started a fundraiser called "Change for Chimps". It was wonderful to see Jess again and her amazing family. We were then told of her most recent fundraiser: a bake sale, in which she apparently did most of the baking herself. It was wonderful to see her look of accomplishment as she handed me a jar filled with money. Jessica and all our friends in Calgary will always hold such a special place in our hearts.
P.S. the chimps really seemed to enjoy meeting Jessica too!
