Dear Friend,

It�s the 4th of July — time to celebrate Koko�s 45th birthday!
Will the stars align again for her birthday wish? This time last year Koko�s birthday wish for kittens came true in the most remarkable way: A litter of kittens was born to the neighbor of one of Koko�s caregivers exactly 4weeks before Koko�s birthday � perfect timing for kitten introductions on Koko�s special day!

Koko has been a fantastic mom to her kittens, Ms. Gray and Ms. Black. In fact, Koko just helped her feline �babies� celebrate their first birthday � one month before her own! The party included presents, fun games, irresistible cat treats and, of course, birthday cake. Koko blew out two candles for the cats� wishes.

This year, Koko�s maternal instincts are as strong as ever and she has been reminding us that she wants a gorilla family. To facilitate her dearest wish we need your help to make the following enhancements to Koko�s sanctuary home:

		A �Gorilla Clubhouse� in her large outdoor habitat, which Koko requested so she can have more options for family activities and interactions;
		An Adaptive Partition so that the large outdoor habitat can be used in morelexible ways, by multiple gorillas; and
		Exploration Pathways to enable the gorillas to move more freely on the grounds and explore interesting destinations.

My hope is that you�ll help Koko with a special birthday gift by donating online at whatever level you are able.

Your gift in honor of Koko�s birthday will also enable us to continue our mission of Conservation through Communication, developing new educational tools to benefit both captive and free-living gorillas. Experience has taught us that two-way communication is key to improving gorillas� lives in captivity � and for raising awareness to help save them from extinction.

As we celebrate Koko�s birthday, we are reminded of the positive impact that Koko has had on the world. She was recently called upon to fill a position of high honor: the �Voice of Nature� at the Paris Climate Conference � expanding her ambassadorship from protecting endangered species to �protecting the planet.�

Thus your gift to enhance Koko�s family facilities will not only help make Koko�s birthday wish come true, but will also enable her life�s work of �changing hearts and minds forever� to continue and expand.  You can help the stars align!

Thank you for your support!

Penny Patterson, Ph.D., President