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KokoVols Archives (Koko's
Featured Volunteers) Click
on any of the following photos to enlarge:
| September 15, 2006
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Anne Adams
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Volunteer Role: Anne Adams (right in photo, next to TGF volunteer coordinator Christa Hill) is a professional database consultant, who specializes in developing database solutions with FileMaker Pro. She has been helping the Gorilla Foundation develop its diverse suite of integrated business and gorilla (research, care and educational) databases since early 2006. Anne has been particularly helpful with the new ZEST (Zoo Enrichment Signing Tutorial) database modules.
Thanks to Ms. Adams consistent oversight of our evolving databases, the Foundation has been able to make huge strides in connecting people with the information they need to best accomplish our mission.
Background: Anne started using FileMaker in 1988 as a personal tool for managing projects, and enjoyed it so much that within 5 years she was a full-time database developer. Her prior career included teaching and marketing/operations management in the high tech industry, and she finds that database development brings together many skills and interests acquired during those years: working closely with clients, developing systems and processes, designing complex solutions, and helping users understand Filemaker and customize the solutions to their specific needs and styles of working. She particularly likes the variety and challenges of working with many different organizations and people. She's thoroughly enjoyed working with Gary and The Gorilla Foundation and feels greatly rewarded by the experience.
Her Perspective: "I knew a bit about Koko and the work of the foundation prior to volunteering, but being more directly involved has been quite an education and inspiration. I'm so impressed by the people involved and their great respect for and commitment to Koko, animal rights in general, and public education on animal intelligence and communication. The anecdotes I hear are sweet, funny, and often deeply moving, and I'm grateful to be able to play even this small role in their work."
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| May 18, 2006
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Robin Dexter
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Robin
Dexter started volunteering at The Gorilla Foundation in 2004
and has become an integral part of our volunteer produce team.
Every Tuesday, Robin comes to Koko’s kitchen ready and
willing to take on any duty asked of him. He specializes in
Ndume’s meals, always making sure the meals are nutritious
and gorilla delicious. His great sense of humor, insightful
ideas and commitment to The Gorilla Foundation make him invaluable
to the volunteer produce assistant team.
Bio: Robin works as a production artist for
a Bay Area print company and is a freelance web developer
and author of www.turnitoff.net.
Growing up in a foreign service family, he has surreptitiously
fed primates from Singapore to Kenya to Brazil and several places
in-between. He's legitimized his compulsion by volunteering
for The Gorilla Foundation, where he puts his eight years of
professional cooking experience preparing meals for Koko and
Ndume.
Previously, Robin worked as a webmaster at an interactive
dot-com company and was a creative copywriter, web developer,
Flash animator, production artist, and occasional hand model
at a Bay Area creative agency.
In his earlier days, Robin backpacked through Europe, picking
olives in Crete to subsidize his trip before making his way
to California in 1983 to attend San Francisco State's film school.
His hobbies include cooking, photography, and music of all
styles.
Robin's Perspective:
"I'm not sure that what I do at the Gorilla Foundation
can be considered volunteerism--not when the rewards so outweigh
the efforts. The chance to spend time with such interesting
and curious people and be part of such a wonderful enterprise
is a privilege. And as someone who fancies himself a decent
cook, just knowing that there is a gorilla out there digesting
my work reminds me that my contributions are part of something
much bigger than myself. " |
| December 08, 2005
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Susan Farrell
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Susan Farrell volunteered at the Gorilla Foundation's Business Office from early 2005 to 2007. She initially helped with direct mail packaging to members, and then graduated to essentially running the KokoMart fulfillment operation (along with co-volunteer Yvonne Escajeda). Susan helped make sure that all KokoMart gift purchases and donations were shipped on time, and that the database reflected the current status. Because of Susan, we have been able to continue to disseminate Koko educational products and accept membership donations online, in an extremely cost-effectively manner. We are extremely grateful to Susan for her in-person contribution.
Susan's Perspective: "My interest in volunteering for the Gorilla Foundation stems from a life long love of animals and a sense of the importance of the inter-species communication research. I knew of Koko for many years and never dreamed that I'd have the opportunity to be a part of the Gorilla Foundation family."
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| November 01, 2005
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Susan Lutter
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Susan Lutter volunteered at both the Gorilla Foundation's Research and Business Offices from 2004 to 2006, and made significant contributions in both areas. At the Business Office, Susan served as the Foundation's development consultant, applying her experience in the corporate world to helping us forge strategic alliances and make important business, marketing and fundraising decisions. Through her frequent travels to Europe, she met with zoos that share our philosophy about empathetic gorilla care, and initiated relationships that may be of mutual benefit to captive great apes everywhere.
At the Research Office, Susan put her culinary skills to work helping the produce workers prepare state-of-the-art (4 star) meals for gorillas Koko and Ndume.
Susan's Perspective: I first heard about Koko in the 70s and have been fascinated by her ever since. It is a thrill to have the opportunity to work with the Foundation, to learn more about its work and about Koko and Ndume, and it is a real privilege to see these magnificent creatures enjoy a snack, settle into a sunny nap, or just walk across the yard.
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