Frida Koahlo News

‘Frida Koahlo’ was a lovely little koala bear that visited my garden. If you followed her story you will know that it did not have a happy ending for her. But I feel that her story can have a big impact on other precious koalas.

I have been involved in some fundraising for ‘Friends of the Koala’  and the Hunter Koala Preservation Society ( the Hunter refers to the Hunter Valley by the way – not a group of koala killers! I though I better explain that for international readers!).

In Bali, Cara Letho was one of my Escape Artists. She made an incredible necklace for each day of the retreat. At the end of the week, she made the beyond-generous donation of all the necklaces and whatever money  was raised was to go to Frida Koahlo and her friends.

Well, the necklaces didn’t make it far – they all sold straight away!

And you can see why – This is one of mine:

And just like the necklace, it makes me feel vibrant, unique and beautiful!

And this is my second one – it says “Party Time” to me
and makes me feel like the artist Frida Kahlo when I wear it – bold!Inspired by Cara’s generosity, Diana Rast donated a collection of her AMAZING mermaid beads-

I have three of them to show you:

these beads are made from glass.

Yes, GLASS!

There is the Blonde Mermaid: ( sold)

The adorable redhead, the Chestnut  Mermaid ( sold):

and the Black Haired mermaid ( sold):

I have tried to capture the layers of glass and detail on each –
they are incredible treasures.

I put mine on some waxed bookbinding thread!

If you would like to get one
you can help raise some more money for koalas at the same time!

All the proceeds for the bead will go straight to the Friends of the Koala group.

UPDATE:

One little mermie  has swum off to a lovely home in Canada! Another to Queensland and the last to Perth! That’s a lovely lot of care for our furry friends. Thank you to Diana and the the new mermie mamas!

………

I asked Susannah, the Treasurer of the Friends of the Koala, to let me know what a donation means in concrete terms. Whenever I make a contribution to a cause I believe in, I like to know my money is being used to really help.

“Hi Jane

Thank you so much for your efforts, it is truly appreciated.  The money you raised will go directly to paying for medications, supplements and vet fees for the koalas.  A koala suffering from Chlamydia (like your Frida) would receive treatment with Antibiotics ($20 p/week) and other medication/supplements ($20 p/week) for 45 days (6 weeks) and Clearview test (which confirms they no longer have Chlamydia) at completion ($20).

$20 + $20 x 6 + $20 = $260 per koala.  As you can see, it’s an expensive business but completely worth the work when they are recovered and ready to go home.

I’ve attached a picture of one of our permanent care koalas, Joanna.  Here’s her little story.

This beautiful little girl came into care about 4 years ago.  She was raised with one of our home carers for approximately 9 months before she was placed in soft release (basically a tree with a fence around it where young koalas learn how to climb and feed themselves).  Joanna sat at the bottom of the tree and didn’t eat for days so she was taken out of the enclosure and placed back into home care.  She was taken to the vet to make sure she was healthy enough to try soft release again when it was discovered she had Retro Virus (koala AIDS).

Under normal circumstances, a Retro Virus koala would be euthanised (they would not survive in the wild) but Joanna had been in home care and so much energy had been expended to get her to that point, it was decided to put her in permanent care at the Care Centre.  She loves her life at the Care Centre where she gets lots of love, attention and the most delicious leaf we can find.

She has stayed small because of her disease so she is perpetually a baby (and super cute).  The supplements she receives daily are the reason she is alive and kicking.  So while it’s not the best case scenario (returning her to the wild) it’s the best we could do for her.

Thank you again for your help.
Regards
Susannah

……

The bushfires that have ravaged my state are still burning, but the danger to humans and houses is thought to be now under control and, my thoughts turn to the wildlife. This is a good time to be doing something for the critters!

You can donate directly to Friends of the Koala through the Paypal website. Any amount is welcome!  Just enter this address as the recipient:
supportakoala@friendsofthekoala.org

Thank you,

xoxox

Jane