July 21, 2006

What a turbulent month this has been! The nightmare began on the Canada Day long weekend when we discovered that our bank account had been seized by the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA). Soon after, we received a phone call informing us that two CRA officers would arrive on the week commencing July 17th, to seize whatever assets necessary to sell and pay off the outstanding taxes. The media gave incredible attention to our desperate call for help and we were soon surrounded by wonderful people all doing their best to help the special birds of the World Parrot Refuge.

Caring people like you opened your hearts and your pockets to prevent impending disaster. The response was overwhelming! Your generosity and interest in helping us to improve the plight of parrots in captivity has been awesome. The words “thank you” seem small compared to the help you provided, but it comes straight from our hearts to yours!

Furthermore, the amazing people at the Great Canadian Casinos stepped up and bailed our Society out from under the hammer of the CRA. This was an incredible act on their part, and we are so grateful that they have helped us to protect these birds from a potentially dreadful fate.

Your support, and that of many other caring people, has made such a huge difference in ensuring we can continue the work we do to help these and many other parrots who need a “Home for Life”. Over the past 13 years, we have given more than 500 parrots the security and love of a permanent home, where they live a free-flight flock lifestyle. With continuing support, we can continue our work and reach out to help hundreds more. We can also continue our efforts to educate people about the real requirements of parrots, in the hope that future generations will prefer to see these amazing, long-lived beings live in their natural environment.

Once more, thank you for your help and interest. Please check our website frequently for coming developments and additions and, of course, come out to visit us at the Refuge!

Yours sincerely,
Wendy Huntbatch

Please click on the thumbnails below to learn how you can help some special birds have a home for life through our "Virtual Adoption" program! More stories coming soon!

Birds who are now partly sponsored, thank you!

Birds who are now fully sponsored, thank you!

"This is, in a word, a great place and these miraculous creatures deserve no less, but few places can deliver it this well. It is, indeed, 'world class'."

– Stewart Metz (author and Director of the Indonesian Parrot Project), after his visit at the Grand Opening of the Refuge on August 13, 2005.

"The World Parrot Refuge is a true sanctuary where parrots live out their lives in a loving, spacious and happy environment under the guidance of extraordinarily caring people. The many visitors destined to pass through the refuge will come to understand that parrots are not toys or trophies, but beings with needs and emotions as real as our own."

– Rosemary Low (author of more than 30 books on parrots)