Welcome To 2021: The Big Cat Trade Ends Here!
January 6, 2021
The beginning of a new year brings many exclamations of “New year, new me!,” but at TCWR, we view it as “New year, same us!” As in all years past, we are continuing to focus on creating a better future for big cats, one day at a time. We are grateful that you have chosen to continue this fight with us!
As we’ve already recounted many times, 2020 was tough, but was filled with so much joy. From the twelve animals you saved to the progress made on the Big Cat Public Safety Act, it was easy to find pockets of peace and evidence of progress even in unprecedented adversity. This has left us going into 2021 with strength, hope, and confidence that big cat lives will continue to change for the better.
Last year, we created a pledge that many of you participated in. It listed 10 simple steps to help end the Big Cat Trade and protect vulnerable animals. Many of our rescues came from significant criminals working within the Big Cat Trade, and the Big Cat Public Safety Act caught the attention of politicians unlike ever before. This happened as the result of hundreds of you taking the 10 simple steps throughout 2020. We are confident that the Big Cat Public Safety Act will be re-submitted in a few short months, and we are going to need your help to get it passed quickly!
We are resharing the 10 simple steps once again to continue the fight and help you find inspiration each day for the coming 12 months:
- Share at least 1 post of Turpentine Creek’s
- Tell at least 1 friend about why big cats make bad pets
- Educate at least 1 person about what a True Sanctuary is
- Create at least 1 social fundraiser to help raise funds to save big cats
- Make at least 1 post to share why you support facilities like Turpentine Creek and what they do
- Volunteer at least 1 hour of your time helping to raise awareness about big cats in captivity (digitally, in person, or at a facility)
- Find at least 1 way to utilize your own personal talents to benefit big cats in captivity
- Recruit at least 1 person to help the Big Cat cause
- Send at least 1 email to my federal government representatives to inform them about the plight of big cats in captivity
- Respond to at least 1 social post telling others why I support Turpentine Creek
If you’d like to do more, please consider becoming a recurring donor! Recurring donors are who kept us going when resources were stretched thin in 2020, and we incurred about $120,000 of new animal care expenses for our 12 rescues. As an added bonus, the COVID-19 Relief Bill has extended up to $300 in charitable donations through 2022, meaning recurring donors can qualify for even more tax breaks. On top of that, we have created an easy-to-use employer match tool on our website, which allows you to see if your place-of-work will double or even triple your charitable donations! It’s a win-win for you, our animal residents, and yes, even your boss. You can sign up to become a recurring donor and use our matching tool at tcwr.org/donate.
Here we go! Welcome to 2021.