VERO BEACH — As a powerful demonstration of the dreadful living conditions endured by chimpanzees at medical research facilities, a bleak cage, 5-foot by 5-foot by 7-foot, was prominently placed in the corner of the Cobalt Restaurant at the Vero Beach Hotel and Spa. It was a stark, dramatic reminder of the reason behind the Chimps Kitchen fundraiser Thursday evening to benefit the remarkable Save the Chimps Sanctuary.
“Some of the chimps lived in these cages up to 40 years,” said William Bedwell, development officer at Save the Chimps. “The majority of the cages didn’t even have solid flooring; just bars which made it easier for technicians to hose them down.”
Founded by the late Carole Noon, Ph.D., the facility is now the world’s largest chimpanzee rescue sanctuary. Twelve 3.5-acre “islands in the sun,” each with its own hurricane proof building, offer a safe haven to chimps rescued primarily from medical research laboratories and the entertainment industry.
The entire Cobalt restaurant and bar was turned over to the event, and every inch was utilized by more than 250 attendees. Numerous food stations were set up around the rooms, offering a delicious assortment of savory vegetarian and seafood dishes, and a huge number of sumptuous banana-themed desserts. Many guests dined on the patio, enjoying the spectacular view of the full moon shimmering on the ocean.
The talented chefs who participated in the feast were Brad Willits, Cobalt; Ronnie Adams, Bobby’s; Ashlee & Ryan Wykoff, Frosting; Samuel Beers, Riverside Café; Roger Lenzi, Avanzare Ristorante; Dan Graham, Culinary Capers and Michael Lander, The Moorings Club.
Playing ancient and hybrid instruments, Key of Life musicians Jeff Lloyd and Teresa Arruza entertained with hauntingly beautiful music that was soothing, spiritual, and somewhat evocative of the land where the original Air Force chimpanzees had been abducted.
The transition from confinement to freedom hasn’t always been easy, and a focus of this third annual Chimps Kitchen was on raising funds to renovate the building which currently houses special needs chimps. After so many years of deprivation, some chimps are either too overwhelmed or physically unable to live in large groups.
New construction of separate, grassy areas outdoors will enable the chimps to see and interact with each other, but will keep them safely apart.
“We want to give them a room with a view,” said sanctuary director Jen Feuerstein. “They just need a little more than our other chimps do.”
The chimps themselves helped the fundraising effort. To the delight of guests, special needs chimps had contributed a large number of paintings as silent auction items. The artwork of Cheetah, a particularly prolific “Picasso,” attracted a few feverish bidding wars.
“We gave Save the Chimps its first Chimp Art Exhibition in 2008,” said Gallery 14 partner Lila Blakeslee. “Barbara Sharp was our guest artist at the time and she told us about Melody, a baby chimp. We put her work on our website; 100 percent of sales went to Save the Chimps.”
“We’ve sold all we had, and we had a lot; it’s been very, very successful,” added Dorothy Napp Schindel.
“I’m so impressed this year,” said Nancy Legere, who bid on a number of paintings. “I love the cause. Last year was lovely, but they have improved it so much. I’m going to stay till the end because I want one of those paintings!”
Jen Feuerstein remains optimistic that the last 19 chimps still housed in the old Coulston research lab in New Mexico will be relocated by the end of the year. “It depends on how introductions go. We’re merging two smaller groups that are already in Florida into one. Then we’ll have an island available.”
The previously scheduled membership day in December, which will allow donors to visit the sanctuary, has been postponed to January, awaiting the celebratory end to the “great chimpanzee migration.”
For more information about Save the Chimps, or to purchase some of the chimps’ unique works of art, visit www.SaveTheChimps.org.
