Hello everybody-- I haven't sent out a Mickaboo Heroes award in a long time, but just have to now. Everyone involved in Mickaboo is extraordinary. My faith in humankind is restored by all of you on a daily basis. This holiday season, there are three Mickaboo volunteers who have just completely blown me away. TOM and CAROL McMASTERS STONE As I think you know, Tom is our new Transportation Coordinator. Even before he had that role, he and Carol routinely drove all over Northern California moving birds and cages. Their latest adventure is a show stopper. The assignment was to get Queeters the Blue and Gold Macaw from his home in Felton (near Santa Cruz) to his new foster home in Paradise (two hours north of Sacramento). To accomplish this, Tom had to make two trips--one with the cage and a second with Queeters. Carol drove to Felton on Thursday to pick Queeters up at the designated place and time. Nobody home--no answer to repeated phone calls. But she didn't give up. Carol spent the night in Monterey with her parents and went BACK to Felton yesterday---finally hooked up with the owner (who seems to have some serious issues.........) and was able to get Queeters and bring him north. Next leg of the journey---taking him from Tom and Carol's home in Winters to Paradise. Tom completed the trip late yesterday. Can you believe it? We are talking about hours and hours of time on the highway right before Christmas so this bird could be safe and cared for. CATHY HESSE I mentioned Cathy in my email thanking people for the holiday party. I want you to know how much more Cathy has done---just since the party! Keep in mind that Cathy organized the holiday party and along with contributing her time (which included soliciting and picking up donations for the party) she donated all the non-alcoholic drinks and tons of food. Next up? She took in as a foster a male amazon, Zeba, who was described as "very aggressive". This bird was chased back into his cage with a broom after his brief "out of cage" time with his previous owner. Cathy loves amazons, and she took to Zeba right away---also recognizing that his "aggression" was clearly complete terror. So far Zeba hasn't shown any aggression in her home---he has been taking nuts from her hand, accepting scritches, and talking a blue streak. Zeba isn't Cathy's only foster. She also took in Meli the tiel, and took her from Hayward to the For Other Living Things class last weekend in Sunnyvale so that Meli could meet prospective adopters. Cathy wasn't done yet! She also heard that her employer might be willing to donate computers to non-profits. We have been desperately seeking Macs so that we can make our tracking software workable for Mac users. Done. Cathy's employer is donating two Macs and several laptops to Mickaboo. Just in case you wondered where the holiday spirit is in the midst of the consumer frenzy, just take a look at these folks. They ARE the holiday spirit. Hope you and your families (human, feathered and furred) all have a fantastic holiday season! Best, --Nancy