Nick Bowman Features Editor | 770-718-3426 | life@gainesvilletimes.com
She (Times
gainesvilletimes.com
Midweek Edition - April 15-16, 2020
Feeding furry, feathered, scaly residents
North Georgia Zoo calls for donations and taps into creativity to stay afloat
BY KELSEY PODO
kpodo@gainesvilletimes.com
North Georgia Zoo’s ani
mals still need to eat.
Although the privately-
owned Cleveland business
temporarily closed its gates
to the public and stopped
its off-site programs, staff
have not forgotten about
the facility’s exotic and
domestic residents.
Jeff Powell, North
Georgia Zoo’s director of
operations, said luckily the
supply chain of food contin
ues to stay strong because
of a devoted following of
community members.
Even with grocery stores
running low on meat, he
said local deer hunters
have contributed venison
to feed the zoo’s serval, cou
gar, lynx, wolves and other
carnivore inhabitants.
“It has really been won
derful to see how people
have stepped up,” Powell
said. “A lot of times it’s
folks we’ve never met.
Some restaurants brought
food over. We can use just
about any kind of produce
or meat.”
Before the pandemic,
Powell said the staff would
offer 400 off-site programs
each year by visiting
schools, churches, clubs
and birthday parties. He
said this loss and the tem
porary closure put the zoo
in a significant financial
squeeze.
To stay afloat and keep
its audience engaged, the
North Georgia Zoo has
tapped into its creativity.
Each day at 1 p.m., an
animal educator features
one of the zoo’s furry,
scaly or feathered friends.
Powell said the staff offer
fun and interesting tidbits
about the animals live on
Facebook, and then post
the videos at northgeorgia.
zoo.com.
Another one of the zoo’s
free programs includes
a live Facebook stream
of baby animal feed
ing including kangaroos,
pacas, servals and porcu
pines. The virtual experi
ence begins at 12:30 p.m.
each day.
People can pay for a
30-minute online chat with
a zookeeper and an ani
mal. The one-on-one meet
ings range from $25-$75
depending on the requested
animal.
“It’s a unique experience
that you can sort of tailor
make,” Powell said.
For those wanting to
invite a larger group, the
zoo provides online animal
parties that last from 45
minutes to an hour. A zoo
keeper can introduce up
to seven different animals.
All reservations can be
made on the zoo’s website.
“People are starting to
book those,” Powell said.
“They’re tired of being in
the house and looking for
something unusual to do
and for their kids to do.
God keeps sending the things
we need when we need them.
It’s exciting to see how God has
responded. We really do feel like it’s
not just our zoo, it’s everyone’s zoo
in this area. The people of North
Georgia are good hearted people.
We just want to say, “Thank you.’”
Jeff Powell
director of operations, North
This is a great opportunity
for them to do that.”
A live auction group
formed on Facebook in late
March to support the North
Georgia Zoo. Commu
nity members, businesses
and the zoo have donated
books, animal-themed mer
chandise, tourism expe
riences and art made by
animals to the cause.
On March 31, the zoo
auctioned a painting cre
ated by its resident sloth,
Noel. The winning bidder
paid $135.
North Georgia Zoo also
started a GoFundMe cam
paign on March 19 to help
with the costs of feeding,
routine maintenance and
employing staff. The link
can be found at the top of
its website’s home page. So
far $3,672 has been raised
for the zoo’s $20,000 goal.
Powell said that North
Georgia Zoo has man
aged to get by even with
furloughing around half
its staff. He said the ones
Georgia Zoo
on-site are working with
reduced pay and hours.
“We’re a privately
owned zoo, so we don’t get
any kind of government or
state funding,” Powell said.
“A lot of people are sur
prised by that.”
Despite the major finan
cial adjustments, Powell
said he still remains an
“eternal optimist.” Fur
loughed staff have volun
teered time to care for
the animals, and commu
nity members continue to
donate food and money.
“God keeps sending the
things we need when we
need them,” Powell said.
“It’s exciting to see how
God has responded. We
really do feel like it’s not
just our zoo, it’s everyone’s
zoo in this area. The people
of North Georgia are good
hearted people. We just
want to say, ‘Thank you.’”
For more information
about the North Georgia
Zoo, visit northgeorgiazoo.
com or call 706-348-7279.
Photos courtesy North Georgia Zoo
Above: A zebra at North Georgia Zoo. Below: A guest of the North Georgia Zoo feeds a
sloth at the Cleveland Zoo.
These days, I’m thinking of all the conversations I cut short
R0NDA RICH
southswomen@bellsouth.net
Among the many down-home
philosophies of Mama’s was her
proclamation that “Somethin’
good always comes out of some
thin’ bad. Always. You just watch
and see.”
I’ve long loved the restaurant
chain, Ruby Tuesday, which
Mama devoutly hated. This
has to do with the fact that they
stopped serving bread with
meals. Mama’s love of bread
led to her strong dislike of the
restaurant.
“It makes me so mad that I
can’t see straight,” she carried
on. “Whoever heard of a meal
without bread?”
If we were going out to lunch
after church, I’d ask, “Where do
you want to eat?”
She’d shrug, “I don’t care.
Anywhere is fine with me.” One
breath. “As long as it’s not Ruby
Tuesday’s.”
When Mama answered the
sudden call of the Lord to go
home, I tried to find good in
that. It was so hard to decipher.
Then, one day, I chuckled to
myself. “Well, now I can eat
at Ruby Tuesday’s any time I
want. Mama was right — there
is something good in all things
bad.” It was small but it helped
a bit.
The last several weeks have
proven that to be true, too.
Among the isolation and restric
tions that have been thrust upon
us, I have become reacquainted
with many beautiful things.
Instead of hurrying past the
dogwood trees as has been my
way for years, I stop and pull
down a bloom to study care
fully its lovely creation. I am
ashamed that I have cruelly dis
regarded it in the past.
I now take the opportunity
to call friends and spend a
leisurely time in conversation
rather than the hurried text or
email. I have caught up on all
my thank-you notes and have
even found time to write letters,
especially to older people who
are bored and feel disconnected.
Particularly widow women.
For the first time in a few
years, I don’t feel out of breath
at the end of the day because
I have gone in a constant trot
since rising from bed. Normally,
I am scurrying to pay bills,
answer correspondence, file,
write and handle details for
speaking engagements. Since
having my entire calendar of
engagements for four months
canceled, it has provided more
free time, some of which I use to
read more books.
Recently, I realized that I
am enjoying this slower pace
so intently that I run the risk of
becoming lazy or, at the very
least, less motivated. I am trying
to carefully guard against that
by pushing myself through a
to-do list every day.
From Tink, I am reminded
that we will return to normal as
he sits in a chair and cheerfully
writes two Christmas movies
for the Hallmark Channel. He
is exceedingly glad this year
‘There is always
magic in the Lord’s
timing and this is
no exception. How
grateful I am that
this uncertain time
coincided with
spring reminding
me of fresh life and
renewal.’
to create these stories, know
ing that Hallmark’s always
successful Christmas movies
will be more than just lovingly
embraced.
They will be akin to fresh
oxygen for a population that has
been gasping for breath.
There is always magic in
the Lord’s timing and this is no
exception. How grateful I am
that this uncertain time coin
cided with spring reminding me
of fresh life and renewal.
Mama, like I, told detailed sto
ries that included the extensive
genealogy of anyone involved
in the tale, what they wore,
and the weather. Mama never
told a story that did not include
something like, “It was spring
of the year and unusually cold”
or “It was July and the sun was
so hot you had to stand in the
shade.”
When Mama started ram
bling into one of these stories
— usually just as I was putting
my hand on the doorknob to
leave — I’d sigh heavily, roll my
eyes and say, “Mama, cut to the
chase. I don’t have all day to lis
ten. I gotta go.”
And that’s another thing that
has changed dramatically.
It’s been many weeks since I
said, “I gotta go.”
There’s something about that
which feels extraordinarily
good.
Ronda Rich is the best-selling
author of There’s A Better Day
A-Comin’. Visit www.rondarich.
com to sign up for her free weekly
newsletter.
