By Daniella Samura, Communication Officer, Tacugama Community Outreach Programme (TCOP)
Giving Day for Apes (GDFA) is a worldwide fundraising contest between accredited sanctuaries for apes (Chimpanzee, Gorilla, Bonobo and Orang-utan) in America, Asia and Africa.It is organised by Mighty Cause, and has been taking place every year on 11th October since 2014. The campaign always starts on 12th September 2022, and ends 11th October 2022. This means that people from all over the world can make donations to the cause for an entire month. Not only does the GDFA campaign help sanctuaries and rescue centres build relationships with donors and raise money for ape care and advocacy, but also the sanctuaries have the chance of competing for different prizes such as: who raised the most funds in one hour, who brought the most individual donors, who had the biggest donor, which sanctuary tells the best story and more.
The primary sponsor for this contest is The Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries (GFAS), an international accrediting body for sanctuaries, rescue centres and rehabilitation centres.
GFAS assists sanctuaries in helping animals through accreditation, collaboration and mentoring. Giving Day For Apes is very important because it helps to develop greater cognition and resources for sanctuaries worldwide. This campaign is Tacugama Chimpanzee Sanctuary’s biggest fundraising event of the year, and it plays a vital role in securing the most-needed funds for the maintenance, running of the sanctuary and care for the chimps.
On average, to care for one individual chimpanzee costs roughly USD$1,500.00 (one thousand five hundred) per year which covers their food, medicine, health check-ups and maintenance of their enclosures.
Tacugama’s story for this year’s contest is “Faces of Tacugama”. There are a lot of people working relentlessly and tirelessly behind the scene to keep the sanctuary functioning. That is why we are using this campaign as an opportunity to tell their amazing stories and showcase the Faces at Tacugama. Morie Lamin is one of those people who are working hard behind the scene. He is the head of Animal Care Staff at Tacugama. He has been working at Tacugama for over eleven (11) years. He knows the chimps in his groups so well that he is always the first to report when one of them is sick orinjured and needs attention. Morie cares about the welfare of the chimps, and also helps with all veterinary procedures. He has created a beautiful bond with the animals. The amazing part is that the chimps also recognize, Morie. If one of them is being naughty or is hurting a younger chimp, he will call out to them and they will stop. This tells us how much the chimps love, Morie. His favourites chimps are Mus, Kouze, Pieh, Gorilla and Chika. I know we are not supposed to have favourites, but we are humans after all, right? Mr Lamin said spending so much time with the chimps has made them part of his family. This, he said, is because most of the chimps at Tacugama are orphans and he feels sorry for them. He stated that working at the sanctuary has its challenges, but every challenge is worth it. Morie said the chimps are always happy to see him, and they show their happiness through friendly gestures and vocalizations.
Another key person working behind the scene is Esther, and she has been working at Tacugama for over a year now.She isalso an Animal Care Staffat Tacugama. She and Mama P are in charge of looking after the baby chimpsthat are in quarantine. Esther loves all the babies at the nursery, and her favourites are Baby Leo and Baby Rushni. Esther is very caring and the baby chimps love her a lot. She said she is very happy looking after the baby chimps because they love to play and eat. She also stated that seeing the baby chimps happy makes her happy.
Indeed, at Tacugama, we are more than a sanctuary – behind the scenes we are a family of close to 60 people working together to make this country a better place for ourselves and for the chimpanzees.
To support Tacugama in providing for these extraordinary species, kindly check our website atwww.tacugama.com or check the GDFA website at www.givingdayforapes.org to get access to the donation link. You can also follow our social media handles on Facebook at Tacugama Chimpanzee Sanctuary and National Animal Campaign and on Instagram and Twitter at @tacugama and @Salone4chimpsto get the donation link. We are counting on the support of all Sierra Leoneans because the chimpanzee is our National Animal.
