I got a wonderful surprise when I arrived home from Caracas on Wednesday. Michael Ostrogorsky of the Northwest Parrots Fund sent me a “Bucket O’ Feathers” as well as a tidy little bag of additional  unclipped wing feathers. Gorgeous!

Some of you unfamiliar with one of my harebrained fund raising  schemes might wonder what in God’s name I would want with parrot feathers. Well, I make stuff with them, auction them off and the money goes to help various rescues around the country. This is one item I made:

Here’s another:

Michael and the Northwest Parrots Fund sent me some feathers to make a few items. I wasn’t real familiar with the Northwest Parrot Fund, but it you think about it, it is on the other side of the country from me, so it isn’t exactly in my neck of the woods.  Located in the Seattle, Washington area,  it is run by Michael Ostrogorsky and the NPF Board of Directors.  Now here is something they do that is really cool and a wonderful idea. They run an online store called “The Parrot Cafe” where they sell all kinds of really great stuff. They have books, coffee, tea, clothing and other assorted “Parrotphernailia.”

 

Naturally I had to rummage around in the online store to see what kind of stuff they had. And I saw this which totally blew me away!

Get your quill pen by clicking on the photo…

Yes, it’s a quill pen made from a Hyacinth Macaw tail feather. And it comes with a pot of royal blue ink! Now for those of you that are nuts about Hyacinths, this is definitely something you have to have. It has a pen nib securely glued to the shaft of the feather and with a pen like this, you’re all set to write something fabulous and look great doing it.

Now that is what I call writing in high style! I’m sorry, but this sucker is seriously cool and simply captured my imagination. It’s definitely something you won’t find at Office Max.

They also make smudge feathers, and sell all kinds of cool and wonderful parrot related items. As my friend Shari says, “Now here’s the thing.” All of the stuff at the Parrot Cafe is incredibly tastefully done and beautifully presented. I like stuff that’s well made and looks good. You can find that kind of thing at the Parrot Cafe.

They have some antique and collectible items for sale as well. Their T-shirts and baseball caps are really very cool. As you know, I like a good baseball cap. I live in Florida and the sun can be an absolute killer on the complexion. The cap keeps the sun out of my eyes and off my face so I won’t end up looking like a catcher’s mitt in the future. This cap is not only versatile, it’s really unusual and good looking. I love the logo!

Want the hat? Click on it for the link!

Durable and in great taste, (meaning it isn’t pink…) it’s “cross-collectible.” It’s a baseball cap that has a parrot on it, and it identifies a destination. I love this cap.

Reading up about the Northwest Parrots Fund, (NPF) I just loved what I saw. First and foremost they try to help people keep their birds. They provide training resources and education for people who are simply flummoxed about what to do when they end up in a not-so-nice situation with their bird. Happens all the time and usually some training and a little guidance can do the trick.

If this is simply not possible, they have a foster network set up and also provide veterinary care for their fosters. They also work with local animal shelters and food banks to establish and support pet bird food banks. I don’t know of many pet bird food banks and this is a standout effort in my view. In this economy, people sometimes simply can’t afford to feed themselves properly, let alone their flock, so this is probably a lifesaver and keeps those flocks in their homes until things turn around for their families.

From what I saw on their website, I simply love their approach to placing their charges. It’s a “no-nonsense” way of doing things and the procedures they have in place simply make sense. They are a certified and registered 501 (c) 3 non-profit and they are looking to grow. I think they’re gong to manage this just fine. I love, love, LOVE their Mission Statement and their way of doing things. They even have a You Tube channel. Here is some video of a couple of their birds messing around:

While I wasn’t real familiar with their work before, I certainly am now! Give the Parrot Cafe a look. It is seriously a wonderful online store and the items you purchase supports the Northwest Parrots Fund.

Click on their neon sign to enter their store:

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