BOBCAT RIDGE

The Friends raised over $450,000 to design and build Bobcat Ridge, a new home for our bobcats Rufus and Tule. We have finalized the design and expect to begin construction in January 2010, with the exhibit opening on June 19, 2010.

ZOO UPGRADES

We are planning several new zoo improvements to engage children more effectively with wildlife. Over the next three years, we will modernize the current habitats and introduce some new animals to our zoo. Our plan is to "net over" 1 acre of the current zoo to create a large enclosure where many of the animals will be loose inside with visitors and have our staff and volunteers, called Zoo Naturalists, facilitate animal encounters.

The Friends are seeking donations to make this all possible, including

• $20K to build a Weaver Bird Tree House,
• $20K to upgrade the Raccoon Creek,
• $15k to upgrade the Bat Cave,
• $5k to upgrade the Owl Aviary, and
• $700K for the netting.

MUSEUM EXHIBITS

The Friends have donated over $50K to fund the current exhibit, "Clean Green Energy Machines!", which explores green living and renewable energy.

If you haven't visited the museum lately, please stop by the Museum to see the new wind and solar machines which were installed in April 2009.

East Palo Alto Science Outreach Program

Each year, the Friends are very proud to sponsor the East Palo Alto Science Outreach Program. This valuable science program provides hands-on classes for hundreds of East Palo Alto children in kindergarten through 3rd grade from Willow Oaks Elementary School. These deserving students are from an ethnically and racially diverse and predominantly low-income community, with limited access to interactive science education classes. Since 1999, over 3,000 students have attended this program, and we hope to expand this program to other EPA schools in the upcoming year. If you would like to help sponsor this important community project, please contact us at info@friendsjmz.org.

In 2009-10, we received a $15,000 restricted grant from Cisco to digitize the JMZ science curriculum and offer a teacher workshop. Thanks to the following Cisco employees who supported and recommended the Friends for funding: Peter O'Riordan, Michelle Gibson, Dalia Geller, Helen Lechner, Mark Gorman, Carol Barrett, and Flavio Bonomi. We also received $25,000 from Carmen M. Christensen to teach 181 science classes at Willow Oaks Elementary.

In 2008-09, we received a $25,000 restricted grant from 4 donor-advised family funds, operated by the Silicon Valley Community Foundation, to offer 200 classes and teacher incentives to continue the program.

In 2007-08, we provided 192 classes with restricted grants from the Palo Alto Weekly Holiday Fund ($5,000), the Rotary Club of Palo Alto ($7,500), and the Palo Alto Community Foundation ($5,000).

In 2006-07, this project was generously co-sponsored by the Palo Alto Weekly Holiday Fund allowing us to offer 96 classes to 300 children.

In past years, Members have helped fund:

"Go Figure!" Exhibit 2007 With member donations, the Friends helped support the "Go Figure! "exhibit. The exhibit encouraged young visitors to engage in their own methods of problem solving and creativity through a series of interactive games.

"Let's Go!" Exhibit 2006 The very successful "Let's Go!" exhibit explored the dynamics of motion and allowed kids to spin, bounce, and roll as they experienced different ways to move and learn about the science behind motion.

Starlab Planetarium. Members helped purchase the starlab in honor of former JMZ director, Mearle Carson, who retired in 1991.

Coastal Stream Exhibit. The exhibit was a re-creation of part of San Francisquito Creek in Palo Alto and designed by local environmental artist Mark Brest van Kempten. Mark spent months on the exhibit, collecting native flora and fauna from the creek. The result was a near exact duplicate of a section of the creek.

Bat House. Originally build as a nocturnal house in 1969, the enclosure was reconfigured for bats in 1998 and then again in 2004. Members helped raise over $125,000.00 for this project. We installed viewing windows, heaters, lights and signage. The JMZ is proud to be the first zoo in the Bay Area to have fruit bats on exhibit for the public.

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