Update July 6, 2010: Thank you so much, everyone! All you wonderful "friends of parrots" have been so fantastic and generous that we've got everyone back to work again. It is truly with your support that we are able to continue helping the over 800 birds here.  Thank you so very, very much!

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17 MORE PEOPLE FACE THE UNEMPLOYMENT LINE: LOSS OF BC GAMING GRANT DEVASTATES THE PARROT SANCTUARY.

The closing of 2 large rescue organizations in Canada in the last 2 years has dramatically increased the flow of parrots to the World Parrot Refuge in Coombs, BC, which is now housing more than 800 birds. The loss of the BC Government Gaming Grant has almost crippled this organization.

With the generosity of loving people and the fund raising ventures of volunteers and staff, the sanctuary has kept its head above water - until now. We need to raise about $30k to get through till the tourist season is under way. Tourism season puts us back in the black for a few months and gives us the chance to apply for grants.

We need the hard working, caring staff to provide this loving home to these previously owned pet parrots and aging ex-breeding birds. Our staff work for just above minimum wage and add hours of volunteer labor because of their devotion to the birds they love.

Now they face the unemployment line.

If the government had used common sense, they could see that it is far cheaper to donate $100k of the Gaming Funds to this charity instead of now having to pay out EI funds. The job market on Vancouver Island is bleak to say the least. To be able to provide steady employment to 17 people is a great help to the economy. These people have families and they spend money. The loss of their jobs will not only devastate them, but will cause great hardship for those of us who volunteer to care for the parrots.

The government gladly takes the tax money from the sale of parrots to the public. Happily grabs tax money from each and every sale of cages, toys and bird food, but bears no responsibility for the problems associated with a trade that should not even exist.

We add a great venue to the tourism industry and provide tax dollars to the government. We want to be open for the upcoming tourist season, but we need the funding to make this possible.

If you are able to help sponsor our staff until tourist season begins, we would be most grateful. The birds depend on our staff, and without them we won't be able to give them the type of care that is needed to provide a Home For Life.

A little ditty from lovely Lindi:

Date: March 3, 2010

Location: Supermarket in Toronto, Ontario www.supermarkettoronto.com.

The musical acts for the evening include:

Sara Kamin
Mandipaal Jandu
The FrameWork
Emma-Lee
The Donefors
Dylan Murray
Lindi Ortega

For more details, visit the Facebook Event page.

Read more »

About 3 months ago, Gloria Fantin from Calgary came to visit the sanctuary. She was amazed by what she saw and felt here, and offered her services to become the volunteer membership director. Whilst here, she could not help but notice that our laundry equipment is caged in for protection from enquiring beaks. She also noticed that it was taking all day to keep up with the endless towels and sheets. On returning to Calgary, she showed her photographs to Enid, a lady who has virtually adopted Ethan, the Blue-Fronted Amazon. Enid was happy to see Ethan looking so well, and enjoyed the stories about the sanctuary. She also decided that she could help in a way that no-one else could. She decided to donate a commercial laundry set. Wow - was all we could say! Wow - and - Can you imagine it? The thought of having new equipment that will cut down on the time spent doing laundry by hours is a dream come true. Gloria got to work and contacted the distributors to send out a representative to see what we needed - and now we know. This equipment is very specialized and uses high power. It also requires a different form of drainage. We decided to build the laundry equipment its very own house just outside the side door.

Then Craig and Fay Hofmaster came to visit their macaw, Bella. Craig saw that we had little to no refrigeration since the parrots have destroyed so many pieces of equipment. He asked what plans we had. I told him that in our dreams we see a walk-in cooler. We want to buy the walnuts directly from California, and save thousands of dollars, but we really need a large cool storage room for such an investment. Craig smiled and said he would look into it for us. Two days later, Craig and Fay came back with a name and phone number for us. I called Tom Richardson in Nanaimo, and he invited me over to see a walk-in cooler. It is absolutely perfect for our requirements. Tom listened to our plans and was very impressed with the work we do saving the lives of so many parrots. He wants to be part of our work - and he donated an enormous 13 x 20 x 10 foot-high walk-in cooler! Can you imagine it?

So, happily, our plans had to change a little. We now have to build the outside laundry room somewhat larger to accommodate the cooler as well.

As if that wasn't enough, Craig said that he would look into finding a commercial dishwasher for us to cut down on the enormous amount of hours spent washing hundreds of dishes.

So the plans had to change a little more... and the new building has to be built a bit larger...

Well, the more we looked at this, we figured that we may as well do a complete addition to the side of the building, to incorporate the food preparation kitchen and the lovely stainless steel sink that Larry and Ann Neil had donated. Although it will prove difficult to prepare food without the assistance of 200 beaks, there is the possibility that it could speed things up! Lucy, the Hyacinth Macaw - just to name one - loves to fly in and use 50 freshly prepared dishes of fruits and veggies as her landing strip. She has even learned to laugh when they crash to the floor.

Doug Jones is now looking for new cupboards and shelves for the new addition. Imagine having cupboards with door knobs and shelves. Imagine having clean laundry stay folded until we need it - food stored safely inside a cooler - dishes sterilized and neatly stacked - WOW!

We already have some huge windows we can incorporate into the design. Horst Neumann has the steel and the equipment to make the steel siding. We need electrical boxes, faucets, copper pipe for plumbing and plastic pipe too. We need 2 x 4s for the construction, rebar for the concrete floor - and concrete too - let's hope we can get a great deal on that commodity. The new addition will be about 35 feet long by 18 feet wide.

If you or anyone you know can help with this project - we would love to have you on our volunteer team! Please phone Wendy Huntbatch at 250 951 1166.

And to think it all began as the Laundry Project!

Thanks to the combined efforts of many volunteers the small birds now have outdoor flight cages!

From Stephanie: Getting a new water filter is a big deal for everyone. There are no dull moments on this job!

You look like you need a hand!

Birds and their power tools!

Ever feel like you're in a remake of "The Birds"?

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!

Birds who are now partly sponsored, thank you!

Birds who are now fully sponsored, thank you!

"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)

"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.