Jewel's cubIn case we don’t get to write an update tomorrow with family flocking in for the Fourth, we wanted to say Happy Birthday tonight. We are happy to live in a land where many patriots made the supreme sacrifice to guarantee a free country.
Where this has been precious to us in recent months is that this country has freedom of speech and a free press where government abuse of power can be revealed and truth can win in the end. Although we lost the trial (pending the appeal), we know we were right, so our faith in that last statement was shaken a bit these last months when the true message didn’t get out. But today a major national news network called with a sincere interest in the truth behind government abuse so blatant that not even a judge dared to buck it.
Another reporter called requesting all the legal testimony so he could write a factual story far more in-depth than anything so far. In America, reporters dare to do that, and the second reporter has done that before.
In Eagles Nest Community, a landowner sent a picture of one of Jewel’s cubs that shows why landowners fall in love with bears here. They see bears as they really are, and nothing is a more powerful teacher about bears than the bears themselves, as we all know. The landowner reported that Jewel and her cubs arrived at the feeding station about noon.
At the WRI, we were glad to see a favorite male report in after mating season. Guy survived another year. No picture this time, but Guy is amazingly unscarred, unlike Victor. We don’t know how Guy stays that way year after year.
BraveheartWe also were happy to see Braveheart again. We took pictures of her face and chest for our records.
Also today, we moved forward on the education outreach front by meeting with the technology team and giving the go ahead on some items. Progress these days is a balancing act between frugality and getting back on track.
Along that line, a teacher called enthusiastically wanting to join the Speakers Bureau and specialize in reaching out to other teachers with our materials. She said the combination of accurate information, beautiful photographs, and revealing videos are ideal for bringing about a true understanding of bears. We hope and believe that ultimately, the Speakers Bureau, which is part of the Bear Center, can eclipse the Bear Center in its educational effectiveness nationwide and beyond. Lily Fans are at the core of the Speakers Bureau.
Thank you for all you do.
—Lynn Rogers and Sue Mansfield, Biologists, Wildlife Research Institute and North American Bear Center
All photos taken today unless otherwise noted.