Views from the Mews
July Newsletter
Dear Friends and Supporters,
 
5,100 hours. That is the number of hours that two and a half of your employees give your company in a year's time. BHRC volunteers contributed 5,100 hours of their time in 2017. What a gift to the birds and the community!

Bird care. Mew repair. Carpet and crate scrubbing. Chicken and bunny butchering. Taking photos. Presenting programs. Writing copy. Creating newsletters. Grant application editing. Transporting injured raptors to Pierre or Watertown to licensed federal rehabbers. Fundraising.

They give THEIR time. We need YOU to give a donation of money. There are 435 people receiving Views from the Mews for July. If every one of you contributed $10, we would have $4,350 to dedicate to the new facility project this month! Even better, if everyone gave a recurring donation of $10 per month, that would be $52,200 in the next 12 months...and we would have a steady stream of funds to keep building!

Help us help raptors fly free!
  
Maggie Engler and John Halverson
Co-Founders
(PLEASE share the link to this newsletter on Social Media to get the word out!)
What good is a parking lot?
What good IS a parking lot?

Imagine if you will - a semi truck off-loading construction materials. Or a cement truck bringing in a load of concrete for building foundations. Without a decent parking lot, and just a little bit of rain or snow, the truck drivers pull onto our property, and encounter classic South Dakota gumbo soil...and sink. A good parking lot means trucks are kept high and dry, we have happy drivers, and happy carpenters.

Imagine if you will - a family bringing an injured owl to the new Raptor Center, and pulling up on a gravel parking lot to bring their precious cargo in for medical help. Safe. Clean. For them and for the volunteers at the Center.

Imagine if you will - a class of children busting out the door of their school bus on the Raptor Center parking lot. The parking lot is their first physical contact with a special place for birds and children. They shouldn't have to think about jumping mud puddles, or getting shoes dirty. Instead, they will stay focused on their eagerness to learn about the role raptors have in the natural world.

What good is a parking lot? A well designed, well built one is a blessing for the next 50 years. Without it, none of the scenarios that end in a positive way can happen safely or easily.

To this end, both a matching gift effort called "Parking with Wild Abandon" and the Pampered Chef fundraiser we shared in our June newsletter were dedicated to our new parking lot. We brought in a total of $739 from these two efforts. To our Pampered Chef devotees, our thanks! Plus a huge thanks to Kimberly Crowe, Pampered Chef consultant from Hot Springs, who donated all her earnings from our fundraiser to our cause.

A parking lot is being built this month on our property. Check the website and our Facebook page to see current photos of the efforts.
Art on the Wing Fundraiser

The exclusive event of the season is Art on the Wing. This art auction fundraiser enters its second year with all proceeds going to the construction of a new education and raptor rehabilitation facility east of Rapid City.

Invitations for this event are going out this month so be sure to get on the exclusive list of invitees (or become a volunteer for the event), because you don’t want to miss this!

Seven exciting regional artists are supporting the Raptor Center by creating original pieces to be auctioned off at Art on the Wing 2018.

This is your chance to add a piece to your art collection from these popular artists:
  • Jim Green: Bronze bird sculptures  (https://jimgreenart.com/)
  • Peggy Detmers: Wildlife art (http://www.detmersstudios.com/)
  • Joel Bielstein: Black Hills Photography
  • Kathy Sigle: Western Watercolors ( http://kathysigleart.com/)
  • Bonnie Labeaux: authentic native star quilts and art
  • Steve Leonardi: Wildlife paintings  (http://buffaloboysgallery.com/)
  • Mike Ward: monochrome photographic prints (http://buffaloboysgallery.com/)

Attendees will have the opportunity to meet these artists, some of our birds, and bid on their favorite piece of art. Plus they get inside information on the building project and the goals of the Raptor Center.

Art on the Wing 2018 will take place Saturday, September 8, from 4-7 PM at the Dahl Fine Arts Center.

Watch our Facebook page and website Events Calendar ( https://www.blackhillsraptorcenter.org/events/ ) for other opportunities to meet the birds and the artists as they work together to create the pieces for this year’s Art on the Wing!
  Items for Sale: Neck Coolers
The heat of summer is sweltering! Show the world your love of raptors while you stay cool. Get one of our gel neck coolers for only $10. (SD state tax is included). All you do is soak the neck cooler in cold water for a few hours or overnight. Once wrapped around your neck, you get great cooling all day. When the heat has left us and the autumn temps are here, simply hang your cooler to dry. Store it in a zip-lock bag for the winter, and reuse it next year.
 
We have two gorgeous designs – a bald eagle and a snowy owl. Shop our store here https://www.blackhillsraptorcenter.org/store/ and order one today!
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  Upcoming Events:

 July 14, 10a - 3p, Farmer's Daughter, Hill City
Meet 'n Greet: Stop in to see the birds

July 28, 1pm Jewel Cave National Monument
Public Program

August 11, 9a - 1p, Rapid City Farmer's Market
Meet 'n Greet: Stop in to see the birds

August 18, 10a - 2p, Pactola Visitor's Center
Meet 'n Greet: Stop in to see the birds

Save the date for Art on the Wing 9/8/18 – (Invitation Only!)

Public Programs & Meet 'n Greets
  • Public Programs are a great opportunity to experience the avian ambassadors of the Black Hills Raptor Center. Grab a few friends and family and join us!
  • Meet 'n Greets are an open house with the birds. Stop by any time during the posted hours to catch a few photos and fun conversation.
These particular events are all free. All family fun.


Please forward this on! AND PLEASE share this on social media, simply click icon below so all your friends and family learn more about our lovely birds. Thanks!