May 9, 2010
Wow time flies. This semester has been difficult but I am holding my own and working hard. I have a job on campus in the evolution lab working with fruit flies that is very interesting. I took a leave of absence from the Zoo to concentrate on my studies and can't wait to start again this summer. Steve Irwin day fund-raising is starting earlier this year. Please go to www.everydayhero.com.au/rebeccaSID10 to do your part. To keep in touch with my animal side I have been doing parties and educational events for Reptile Finders. Hug a lizard or kiss a snake and any day is suddenly better. I viewed the documentary "Food Inc." and advise everyone to do the same. It is the most unbiased film I have seen. Knowledge is power. As I climb higher toward my educational goals and still try to do all that life requires things can get stressful. I thought I would share a few of my favorite quotes with you. These help me keep pushing. "I am not discouraged because every wrong attempt discarded is another step forward." Thomas A. Edison, "Show me a man who never failed and I'll show you a man who never tried." Teddy Roosevelt, "One man can make a difference, You can Make a difference." Wildlife Warriors. It is important to remember that we all make a difference. I would like to thank a new friend of mine that I recently met in Maui, David Lange. His love of animals is making a difference. He looked at my website, realized he could help, and started spreading the word to help Save Steve's Place! He proves that one man can make a difference.
David you're awesome! Well Chemistry Tests and Finals week wait for no-one. I am off to conquer academia. "WARRIOR: One who is engaged in battle."
If you need inspiration I'll share with you mine; read Terri Irwin's book Steve & Me. Rebecca
January 29, 2010
Happy New Year! It's been a while since I've been able to catch you up. December was a flurry of Finals and extra hours at work. With the help of my parents and friends combined with my hard work I managed to pay for spring tuition. Spring semester started this week. Let me backtrack for a moment. Steve Irwin Day was a Success! We raised more than last year. Being able to watch Steve Irwin Day Live from Australia in my living room in CA was great. I passed Calculus and got A's in all my other classes, tried to keep up with my volunteering, and rode out the end of 2009. Now is a new year and new exciting things are on the horizon. The semester started well, I'm finally grasping Calculus, have been accepted as a research assistant in the on-campus Evolution Lab, and am keeping up with the extra hours at work. The big plans for this new year (both animal and personal) are: Training to do a Sprint Triathlon, Start working more with schools on wildlife education, Go to the Wildlife Expo in October held in San Francisco (anyone want to come?), and to keep happy and organized. Totally doable right? Remember Wildlife now has a Facebook page (Thanks Isel!). Terri Irwin (my boa) is now over 6 ft long and weighs almost 7 lbs, she is as sweet as ever and still helping me raise money for wildlife and educating people about snakes. I'm sure I'm missing a lot, however, there is always the ability to catch you all up later on. Thank you for your continued support. Let me know if you are interested in joining me for any of my upcoming escapades.
Have A Great New Year and Keep Our Wildlife in People's Minds All Year!
Nov 8, 2009
Life sure has been busy. School is over 1/2 way through the semester. I've been working hard at the fund-raising for Steve Irwin Day, We're about to move to a bigger place,and Steve Irwin Day is less than a week away. I don't have a ton of time to catch up with all of you yet. Instead please look at the website for current events, check your e-mails for news and invites, donate, and wish me luck. The end of November is the end of Steve Irwin Day fund-raising for the year but we all need to remember that the animals need us year round. So far we've raised $1628 last year I reached $2000, I will be so happy if I can just surpass last year by even a dollar. Thank you to all who have helped and donated. You're support means so much to me. I'll catch you up with all the details later when I get a chance to breathe. Have a great week and remember to KHAKI IT!
Celebrate Steve Irwin Day On Sunday November 15th! Rebecca
Oct 7, 2009
Well life just keeps getting busier and more exciting. It's hard to figure out where to start so let me go back a little. A couple weeks ago I was lucky enough to meet and feed a variety of lemurs. These are truly amazing creatures. It surprised me that some other people also seeing the lemurs that day knew them from cartoons but did not have a clue that they were all critically endangered species. Your task the next time you have a moment: look up lemurs and Madagascar (the island not the movie). I think the Safaka Lemurs are my favorite.
This past weekend was the big road trip! I drove from Los Angeles to San Francisco to attend the World Conservation Networks 2009 Expo. I listened to many speakers, perused the booths, and spent the day gathering information. The highlight of the event was getting to hear Dr. Jane Goodall speak. She is an eloquent speaker and really gets her message across in a positive way. After lunch she had a book signing and I was able to meet her and get her latest book. At 75 she travels 300 days a year, has more energy then me, and is an inspiration to all. A lot of driving and wind but well worth the trip. She'll be back next year for anyone who's interested.
On the fund-raising front things are slowing down so I'm going to have to find time to speed them up. I have 3 more fund-raisers coming before Steve Irwin Day. The next big one is Wildlife Warrior Wednesday comedy show on Nov 11. See details on the home page and get your tickets today! Let me know if you have time to help me get some mailings out.
School is still teaching me patience, perseverance, and time-management. I am trying to look at it like a challenge not a barrier. It's not always easy to stay positive. I work at it everyday but life from a negative viewpoint would be such a waste.
Keep Smiling. Keep Trying. Keep Remembering The Wildlife! Give someone a hug today. Smile at a stranger.
Hope to see you at the next event! Have a great week. Keep checking back for updates! Til then, Rebecca
Sept 22, 2009
Today is the first official day of fall. Steve Irwin Day is only 53 days away. The donations are slowly mounting. This past Sunday I hosted a booth at the AAZK/LA Gorilla Grand Prix. Between donations and winning the 50/50 raffle $268 was raised for Wildlife Warriors! Three pages of signatures were also collected for the Save Steve's Place petition. Have you signed it? Use the link under the news tab. My beautiful snake was also very popular and did a great job as a wildlife spokes-snake. I still have at least four more fund-raisers planned up to November 15th. Currently I just started the silent e-mail auction for a VIP day at my place on SID (see details under events tab). Please help me keep moving up to reach my goal. Even the poorest person can find $2 to donate. How can you help?
School is moving along. I can't believe it's the 4th week already. I still feel like a newbie but I have made one friend. I am learning both patience and perseverance in my classes. I am determined to conquer calculus. I am also working on my time management skills to help make life a little less stressful.
The upcoming weekend of Oct 3, 2009, my friend and I are driving to San Francisco to attend the big Wildlife Conservation Expo. We have special wristbands to hear Jane Goodall speak live. There are also ten other speakers from ten different countries and information booths. I am very excited and hope to learn a lot.
The thought for the week is this: How many times have you purchased that expensive cup of coffee or ice cream then turned around and gave a reason why you couldn't donate to a worthy cause? Everyone can do something. Donate a dollar or two, more if you have it. No money? fine. Speak up. Sign a petition. Share the information with your friends. There is always a way to help. Complacency is equal to destruction. Don't do it later. Do it Now.
OK enough preaching for today. I'm off to battle calculus. Everyone have a great week! Rebecca
Sept 4, 2009
Today is the third anniversary of Steve Irwin's death. Keeping this positive I want to reflect on what this means to me and how it changed my path in life. Those of you who know me may remember it was not his death that impacted me so much as the realization of our need to pitch in. It will take so many of us to pick up where he left off and help continue the Irwin family legacy in wildlife conservation. The first year I went back to college(this time as a zoology major), started volunteering with wildlife, started learning any way I could, and did my first fund-raising for Wildlife Warriors (around $350 the first year). The second year, I gained momentum in school (straight A's, full-time), continued volunteering, continued fund-raising ($2000 second SID), started my own wildlife organization: Remember Wildlife, and started thinking bigger. This third year, I am halfway through school (just started CSULB), expanding my volunteering, expanded Remember Wildlife, and raised my fund-raising goal to a whopping $5000 more than double last year. Currently having raised 1/10 of my goal with 71 days left until Steve Irwin Day 2009. I have my next event lined up, appealed to my friends and family, and am looking for ideas to help me meet my goal. I have finally found my niche in life. It is amazing to go from hearing it to believing it, I now KNOW one person can make a difference. I do.
This was also my first week at Cal State University Long Beach after having transferred from El Camino Community College. I am taking 3 classes for 12 units full-time. I like all three of my teachers but am especially excited about my calculus class. I think I'm going to actually get it! Being on the university campus is a bit of culture shock. Simple things such as parking and where the snacks are have to be re-learned. There are soooo many people that while it can feel crowded at times, it makes for great people watching when you're early for class. It's the largest variety of people I think I've ever been around. My goal the first week of class is always to make sure all my teachers know me by name. I accomplished this in all my classes, even the one that has 250 students. This is definitely a new curve in my learning experience. Now for a long holiday weekend to catch up on life's stuff, homework, and fund-raising, then back to school.
Fund-raising kind of stumps me. I try new things each year and while last year went well this year is harder. I like to rise to the challenge though and will be happy if I can raise even a dollar more than I did last year. I am still aiming for my super goal until then. Next up is an AAZK/LA gorilla fund-raiser for their chapter. I will be having a booth at the fair section of it. The cost of the booth goes to the gorillas (worthy cause) and everything raised at the booth will go to SID Wildlife Warriors fund-raising. It looks like fun. I don't yet have a plan for what to do after that. Any Ideas? e-mail me.
Well enough for now. I have much to do before work today. So the thought for the day is this: the circle of life happens. What are you doing to make a difference while you're here?
Have a Great Day! CROCS RULE! Don't worry Steve, we will all continue your work. Rebecca
August 19, 2009
Wow, what a night! Last night was my first fundraiser of the season for Wildlife Warriors! It went really well. I don't have the final numbers yet but between private donations and ticket sales I think we reached $500. Not a bad start to my SID (Steve Irwin day) 2009 fund-raising season. A lot of people I knew and some I didn't showed up for this fun night. Tom Papa was Hilarious! I haven't laughed that hard in a long time, and I work there. Everyone seemed to have a great time. Andrew went out of his way to make things perfect for me and Rebecca M created a special vegetarian menu for my guests who don't eat meat. Alice, one of the regulars at the club and a HUGE animal lover, was beyond generous and helpful. Thank You all who came and/or helped me make this happen.
Here's the deal. This year will be the 3rd official SID on November 11,2009. The first year I raised around $350 and last year I did a couple events and got donations totaling $2000. This year I'm aiming higher. MY GOAL IS TO RAISE $5000 BY THE END OF NOVEMBER! Only $4500 to go! I'm looking for event and fund-raising ideas.
As my friends and family know I request EVERY year to not buy me gifts for holidays and birthdays, instead please donate to Wildlife Warriors. Some people still insist that I need things to unwrap. This is not true. I am extremely blessed and have everything I need. So my plea is this: Please Help Me reach my goal by the end of November. I don't need Christmas gifts. I need wildlife to still exist when I graduate college so I can get a job. If you really need to wrap something, wrap up the check to Wildlife Warriors. Thanks to those that already do this for me. You are truly making a positive difference!
Well that's enough for this installment. Keep checking back there are a lot more exciting events on the horizon: My Favorite animal keeper Nicole will be doing a charity event Go-carts for Gorillas, I start CSULB soon, and the SID fund-raising continues!
Have a great day! Thank You all for your continued support. Rebecca
August 15, 2009
My first official "blog". I swore I would never do it but here I am. Here's the deal. People have been asking for one. Seriously don't you have anything better to do? But it looks like there have been enough hits on my website and enough interest so I decided to do it with a few guidelines.
My own personal guidelines for my blog. No complaining. Must be positive. Must revolve around College, Wildlife & Animals, Conservation, and Current Events. Will also be a forum to answer general e-mail questions, fun facts, and maybe a few recipes.
What you will be reading about. Stories, some boring, some funny, etc. about my experience transferring to a big university and how I'm surviving as a science major at thirty-five. Wildlife friendly tips and recipes. Wildlife fundraisers and events. Stories of my animal encounters from my work with wildlife. Positive stories.
LET IT BEGIN: Yesterday I made my way to the big campus to pay my tuition and check out what I needed for books. Some may say this is no fun. I, however, love book stores and college libraries. I spent a good hour in the bookstore getting details on what I needed and buying my first CSULB shirt. I had to make it official :) you know. I purchased books for my classics class (a capstone requirement)only to leave laughing because it was a book of erotic poetry and a dictionary to Greek mythology.
Next week will be a busy one. I need to figure out where my classes will be (Calculus, Classics, and Anthropology), buy the rest of my books, and learn where to park. I already know where the two Starbucks are. I love getting ready for a new semester and getting everything prepared. It may be a big geek thing but the best part of school is arriving first getting the best seat (up front and center), and leaving that first class sure that the teacher already remembers your name. I love getting that first homework assignment and going over the syllabus, confident I'm going to kick butt! My goal is always to be in the top 3.
Also next week, is my fundraiser. So far I am only at seventeen tickets sold but to keep this thought positive, that's $255 raised for Wildlife Warriors! Whoo Hoo! You still have time to buy your tickets see the homepage. This is just the beginning. My goal this year is to raise $5000 by the end of November in honor of Steve Irwin Day. Keep Checking the website for upcoming details or donate now on my Shop/Donate page through PayPal, just be sure to put in the notes it's for SID.
Lastly, next week I plan on finishing getting my house in order. We all know I am a slob but capable of greatness. I am half way there! Anyone wanting to help, let me know.
I hope to finish the week by spending some long overdo time with my best friend! About time.
Well that is absolutely enough for this installment. They will be randomly posted and are not on official rss feed, only found on my website.
P.S. Reptile Finders has hired me to design their website and help with reptile parties. So much fun. It's still a work in progress but check it out at www.reptilefinders.biz
HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND! I HOPE TO SEE YOU ALL TUESDAY NIGHT! Rebecca
