September to December 2019

SEPTEMBER TO DECEMBER 2019 Update:

Wow! We blew threw the end of 2019 like it was nothing! I am so overwhelmed with gratitude for the support and generous donations. The passion and involvement this community has never ceases to amaze me. Thank you so much!

SEPTEMBER

WE LAUNCHED THE WEBSITE! Self-explanatory. I am trilled to have this up and running. Look for updates every couple of months — the information will be expanding!

Fortunately, Hurricane Dorian missed Boca, and we got very lucky. Let me tell you, we were as safe and prepared as we could be! So many of you reached out and sent vital supplies to us in case we suffered during the storm. Incredible. All the kinks were housed inside but stayed enriched and ate very well. We were so so lucky.

Our cat tree fundraiser went above and beyond — you all blessed us with 4 cat trees! The kinks are loving the height and depth in the main enclosure.

Kinkatopia participated in the #WildlifeChallenge for the second year in a row. Binx painted artwork for auction to benefit elephants and lions. The fundraiser was a success!

Kinkatopia was out and about! We traveled to Apopka to celebrate Chimera the liliger’s 2nd birthday! Chimera is a resident at the Care Foundation, where our friend Yoda kinkajou resides. I also took Kinky out in the community for some encounters. He was a great ambassador for Kinkatopia!

OCTOBER

Training continued, outdoor enclosures were revamped, and new volunteer relationships were made. I am putting out more content so followers can experience what it’s truly like to work with so many different kinkajous. They are all so different! And their behavior can change on a daily basis.

In mid-October, Winnie joined us. What a blessing! She is our 8 th resident at Kinkatopia. She started out very scared and sad. Slowly, but surely she as started to come out of her shell. Winnie is a (now) 2-year- old captive bred kinkajou, who was surrendered to us for being aggressive. She is also an amputee! Winnie needed to have her right hand amputated for health reasons. Thus far, we have been working daily to assure her needs are met. She has been as sweet as can be.

Kinkatopia executed our first elementary school presentation. Kinky was a rock star! In return, the students are making busy boards for the kinkajous. I am due to pick them up in January 2020.

November/December

We launched merchandise just in time for the holidays! From our 2020 calendar to tote bags, Kinkatopia has you covered.

Between visits, boarders, preparing for the holidays, and settling Winnie — we stayed very busy! We received so many cool gifts and even held a contest for a Kinkajous Bottle Cutter giveaway. Our website was updated with more information and our official apparel store was opened.

We launched our Twitter account: @kinkatopia1

In mid-November, I had surgery on my foot, which continued to cause complication into January. This slowed me down some, but the help I’ve had is amazing! I cant even put everything into words, but I know I’ve kept our supported informed on our social media. We’ve had so many visits and donations — Kinkatopia is thriving!

2019

This past year has been so overwhelmingly amazing. We’ve taken in 2 more permanent kinkajous: Kinky and Winnie. Kinkatopia has continued to communicate and inform on an international level. Our support is growing. I helped place 18 kinkajous into permanent environments and assisted on 5 others with California Fish and Wildlife.

We’ve had 2 viral videos made about the organization and even appeared on the evening news. Over the summer, I was able to give an account regarding kinkajous as pets to the Palm Beach Post, a local newspaper. We’ve also had some amazing influencers visit and promote us, as well as each and every individual who lives and breaths Kinkatopia with us.

I’ve written blogs for 2 companies, allowing me to promote mental health awareness and the animal industry. I outed myself as a recovering alcoholic and have been welcomed with nothing but open arms. Kinkatopia’s values of love and acceptance have fiercely come to fruition.

Our research is growing, and I am working to document and publish. Our medical knowledge is evolving — I am connecting dots regarding some common kinkajou health issues.

We’ve fundraised! Asked for help! Had sleepless nights! Cleaned! And cleaned some more! I’ve come up with crazy goals and this community always helps me meet them. Kinkatopia is — we are — beyond my wildest dreams.

What’s to Come in 2020

We were blessed with the funding to execute our full renovation project! Money from boarding, merch, and #GivingTuesday allowed us to launch the project. AND THEN! An angel human and kinkajou team graced us with the ability to execute this whole project. Two upgraded outdoor enclosures will be built for Kinky and Chloe. This leaves us with 2 empty spaces for boarding and outdoor play. We will also have funds to start renovating the indoor main room and possibly complete it!

Our new reoccurring monthly event: Kinkatopia Keeper Evening. This is an RSVP only event. Each month, we are welcoming 3 volunteers to have a full Kinkatopia experience. What is it like to run Kinkatopia? You now can find out. The evening kicks off at 4pm with deep cleaning, followed by dinner on Kinkatopia, and then a full evening with the kinkajous. We will be preparing their meals and enrichment just in time for them to wake up and socialize. You can take all the photos you want! Contact us to find out more! February is already booked!

Of course, there will be more: kinkajous, visits, boarding, consults, research, fundraising, educational exhibits, renovations, platforms … you name it! We are going to keep at it!

WAYS TO SUPPORT

Kinkatopia has may ways to support our cause — not just directly, but indirectly as well.

1) We accept monetary donations in many ways: PayPal, Venmo, CashApp, Facebook, ApplyPay, check, and other basic forms of money exchange. Also, most of the above companies recognize Kinkatopia as a charity (if they provide that feature) and you can donate that way as well.

2) The Kinkatopia Amazon Supply List can be accessed here. This is a new way to support Kinkatopia! You can do this on Amazon or for a double win, on AmazonSmile. Donations will be mailed directly to Kinkatopia and Amazon provides you with a receipt for tax time. If you don’t feel comfortable donating funds, this is a great way to help us get supplies.

3) We are on AmazonSmile! Go to amazonsmile.com to make your Amazon purchases, and they will donate a percentage to Kinkatopia! You just need to select us as your chosen charity.

4) As mentioned earlier, Arm the Animals will donate to us! Purchasing from armtheanimals.com and using the code “Kinkatopia” will donate 20% of your order to the kinkajous!

5) LOCAL SUPPLY DONATIONS — We are always in need of particular items: newspaper, used furniture, cat trees, cut tree branches, etc.

6) “Like” and share on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.

7) Check out my articles on Reach Out Recovery! Please follow, like, and share. This platform can help us raise more awareness for Kinkatopia! There are nuggets in these posts that everyone can enjoy.

8) Instagram now offers the ability to hold fundraisers via a donation sticker on your IG stories. Help out Kinkatopia by holding your own personalized IG fundraiser! We appreciate Facebook fundraisers as well! Every dollar helps so much!

9) Buy our merch! Kinkatopia now offers merchandise and apparel.

10) Visit the “Sponsor a Kink” and “Give to the Kinks” sections on our website. These options give you a more personalized way to contribute to our needs and specific kinkajous.

All donations are tax deductible and receive a thank-you Kinkatopia bracelet.

Thank you to everyone for your continued involvement and support.

Take care!! Peace, love, and kinkajous.