BOISE — Zamzows Inc., the Treasure Valley’s 86-year-old lawn care, garden supply, and pet retailer, Friday presented a $2,400 check to BSU’s Intermountain Bird Observatory.
The donation was the result of a recent fundraising campaign the retail chain organized in which it donated one dollar for every bag of Zamzows Wild Bird Food it sold. A store representative said 64,160 pounds of bird food was purchased by customers by between January 3 and January 20.
The check was presented to IBO Executive Director Greg Kaltenecker. “This will help us pursue our mission -- which is teaching the public about birds, their habitats, their foods, and their conservation! We feel that bird feeding is one of the best ways to get people interested in and excited about birds,” he said. “We are always big on teaching the importance of habitat -- and Zamzows not only sells bird food and feeders, but also sells plants and everything else you need to grow bird habitat, right in your back yard, to go along with that bird food!”
Kaltenecker also pointed out that Jim Zamzow frequently talks about the Boise River on his television commercials and how keeping it clean for fish and wildlife was important, stating, “We at IBO are also trying to demonstrate at our Boise River property just how important that is and why!”
Zamzows Inc. third-generation owner Jim Zamzow said it is really Zamzows’ customers who are the heroes, because they are the ones that purchased 2,231 bags of food and contributed almost $125.00 in “extra” cash contributions.
Callie Zamzow, Co-CEO of Zamzows Inc. added, “I love our partnership with IBO. They are doing the vital work of tracking these birds, and monitoring their health, so that we can have a vibrant Wild Bird population. That makes it possible for us at Zamzows to provide both feed and feeders for them which, in turn, provides hours of free entertainment, plus natural insect control for thousands of homes in the Treasure Valley … not to mention a song every morning!”
The Intermountain Bird Observatory (formerly Idaho Bird Observatory) is a non-profit academic research and community outreach program of Boise State University focused on impacting human lives and contributing to conservation through a combination of research, education, and community engagement.
(photo courtesy: Art Gregory/Zamzows)
