Adopt a manatee this holiday season
To the editor:
Endangered manatees could really use some extra help. We have lost close to 700 of the gentle marine mammals so far this year, which is 13 percent of the entire known Florida manatee population! Manatees are listed as endangered at the international, federal, and state levels.
Help by joining our Adopt-A-Manatee program. The popularity of eco-friendly holiday gift-giving is on the rise. Manatee adoptions from Save the Manatee Club are gifting options that gratify holiday shoppers twofold it’s easy on the conscience and the pocketbook. And although the endangered manatees in the Club’s adoption program live primarily in Florida waters, ever-growing admiration for the charming marine mammals extends across the United States and well beyond. In fact, when someone adopts a Florida manatee, they are also helping to save manatees in West Africa, the Wider Caribbean, and South America, where Save the Manatee Club continues to expand rescue, research, and education efforts.
An annual manatee adoption costs $25 and includes an adoption certificate, color photo of a real Florida manatee, biography, membership handbook, and newsletters throughout the year with updated reports on the manatees in the adoption program. Shipping is free within the United States. A personalized holiday message comes with the gift adoption. And each new member who joins the Adopt-A-Manatee program online for a $35 tax-deductible donation will also receive Save the Manatee Club’s special edition 2011 wall calendar, in celebration of the Club’s 30th Anniversary. There are 33 real manatees to choose from in the Club’s adoption programs.
For more information about adopting a real manatee this holiday season, contact Save the Manatee Club at 500 N. Maitland Ave., Maitland, FL 32751, call 1-800-432-JOIN (5646), or visit their web site at www.savethemanatee.org. Also, sign up for the Club’s free E-Newsletter and purchase unique manatee gifts at the Club’s gift catalog at www.savethemanatee.org/shop.
Save the Manatee Club is the world’s leading nonprofit manatee conservation organization, dedicated to protecting manatees and their habitat. Singer/songwriter Jimmy Buffett co-founded the organization back in 1981, almost 30 years ago. Funds from the adoption program go toward emergency rescue response for sick and injured manatees, and for waterway signage, public awareness, research, and much more.
Thank you for your help!
Janice Nearing
Director of Public Relations
Save the Manatee Club?
Maitland, Fla.