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ZippityZooDoo: Black & White Bash
Steve Taylor with Cathy and Dennis Roche
(ZippityZooDoo)
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Steve Taylor with Cathy and Dennis Roche
(ZippityZooDoo)
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Dick and Pam Chodera with Liz Fowler
(ZippityZooDoo)
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Tara Turner with Fred and Anne Rzepk
(ZippityZooDoo)
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Cleveland Zoological Society
“ZippityZooDoo: Black & White Bash”
It felt as hot as the African savannah, but the 37th Annual ZippityZooZoo was definitely the coolest place to be. A tip of the pith helmet to Tara Turner, Fiona Green and a very expectant Rita Fuller for keeping the party humming. More than 500 guests — most in the suggested black and white and pink attire — filled the tent at the entrance to the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo for an elegant sit-down dinner provided by ARAMARK.
After looking over the many silent auction items, guests had a chance to sip a special “zoo-tini” as they looked over the work in progress on the new elephant habitat scheduled to open next year. In fact, the 2011 ZippityZooDoo will be one of several grand opening celebrations welcoming back the Zoo’s largest residents to their new home.
This night’s focus, however, was on the Zoo’s scholarship and conservation education programs, which will benefit from the evening’s events. The silent auction drew lots of attention; it seems no one can pass up a chance to help round up flamingos, win vacations in Lake Tahoe or Sarasota, or stay overnight at the Zoo with two dozen friends. And as for Oscar Villaveal, his elephant-sized bid of $5,000 to name a Zoo street definitely helped capture the party’s $240,000 goal.
A shout-out to corporate table sponsors, who turned out en masse to support the Cleveland Zoological Society. When it comes to the zoo, it seems everyone’s a kid at heart. STORY BY LINDA McMULLEN/PHOTOGRAPHS BY JOHN BASHIAN
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