​NYC AAZK Meeting Minutes
January 29, 2019
Public House Bar, Manhattan 

Next Event & Meeting:
Queens Zoo Keeper Presentation Night
- Wednesday February 13, 2019 

Pints for Penguins:
- Thank you to all who came out to our first ever Pints for Penguins!
- Over 100 people in attendance!
- Made over $1100!
- All proceeds are being sent to SANCCOB for penguin rehabilitation & conservation 
- Shout out to John Scott who organized the event!

The exec team met with Megan Baumer (former Bronx Zoo Reptile Keeper and old VP of NYC AAZK)
- She works for a custom corporate gift company
- Discussed options for ordering future AAZK merchandise to sell at events
- Megan is able to get us discounts and work closely with us to customize items
- Megan is also the vice president of the Foundation for the Conservation of Salamanders 
 (former NYC AAZK treasurer Lauren Augustine is the president). Looking into hosting a fundraiser.

Croctoberfest 2018 Update:
- Some late additional funds were received and were not taken into account, which 
  brings this year's donation to the WCS Herpetology Conservation Fund to $2581!

- Nice work to the Herpetology staff for organizing another successful event!

AAZK National Conference 2023:
- Joe Nappi met with Bronx Zoo Curator of Mammals Colleen McCann and Bronx Zoo Ornithology 
  Collections Manager Kevin Hils (AAZK's liaison to WCS management) to discuss the prospect
  of hosting the AAZK National Conference in 2023. Both are very supportive of the initiative 
- We are continuing to work our way up the chain of command to move this conference forward
- A letter of intent must be submitted by our chapter and WCS to AAZK National by April 1st 
- Over 20 people have signed up to help organize the conference. No role is too small!
   If you have any interest, please respond back to this email. This is a great leadership opportunity!
- Should the conference be cleared by WCS management, we will then set up a meeting/email
chain to start discussing amongst our chapter the specifics of hosting the conference. 

Membership Dues:
- $5 for AAZK National Members
- $10 for non-AAZK National Members
- Feel free to give your chapter dues to any of the AAZK executive team, or indicate 
  by responding to this email if you would like to become a member. A few people 
  paid their dues late last year. If you are unsure if you are still an active member, please ask
- These fees help to offset our annual re-charter fee (Over $400 a year)
- Member benefits: discount to Bowling for Rhinos, voting on chapter finances/elections/
  other chapter matters, eligible for annual $1000 travel grant 
- The exec team is discussing the possibility of initiating a participation points system.
  The more you participate, the more perks you get such as waved chapter membership
fees, and for the top point scorer, a paid AAZK National Membership for one year. 
  Stay tuned for more info!

AAZK Tentative 2019 Calendar:
February: Queens Zoo Keeper Presentation Night
March: Compassion Fatigue lecture by Dr. Cohen at Central Park Zoo
April: Horseshoe Crab Monitoring at Jamaica Bay
May: Salamander fundraiser 
         DIG Farm (sustainable education farm) field trip to plant pumpkins with 
         Elizabeth Mills (will make another trip to harvest them in October)
June: AAZK Pride Event (Therapy Gay Bar, raising money for Big Cat conservation)
July: National Zoo Keeper Week/Silent Auction
August: Bowling for Rhinos
October: Croctoberfest 

Other ideas:
Environmental clean-ups
Dr. Conway History Presentation (Joe Nappi)
Nature Conservancy volunteer outings (Melissa Ortiz)
Bee Garden set up (Lauren Del Grosso)
Plastic Awareness Day in July (Lauren Del Grosso)
Trivia Night (Lisa Eidlin)
Wildlife Rehabilitation Center networking (Maya Stay)
Reaching out and networking with other local non-profit organizations (such as Bee Keeper Society)

We always welcome any new ideas! Have an organization or cause 
that you are passionate about that you want to support? Want to put 
together a fundraiser or volunteer outing? Have a connection to someone
who could give a presentation at a meeting? Want to host a keeper 
presentation night at your facility? Reach out to us and we will help you make it happen! 

​NYC AAZK Meeting Minutes

Prospect Park Zoo - September 4, 2018

Prospect Park Zoo Keeper Presentation Night
- Thank you to the Prospect Park Keeper staff, especially
  Sarah Parker who helped spearhead the event!
- Four presentations were given which included topics on
  training zebu, calitrichid management, dingo introductions
  techniques, and an outline of an insect diversity study at PPZ.
- We were also shown the PPZ big headed turtle propagation area
  as well as how the insect studies are conducted.
- 20 keepers attended, included 5 from the Bronx (representing
  the Mammal, Bird and Special Animal Exhibit departments),
  3 keepers from Central Park Zoo, and 2 keepers and a vet
  tech from Queens Zoo.
- This was the first AAZK event at PPZ. This was also the first year
  that NYC AAZK has hosted events at all 5 WCS parks in one year
- We would love to continue to rotate events around between the
  different parks to help WCS keepers network and share knowledge
  with each other. Any ideas for future events would be greatly appreciated!

AAZK ideas:
- Mo from Queens: Howling for Howlers karaoke fundraiser,
  Archery for Andeans (Andean bear fundraiser)
- Mo is also trying to get Dr. Cohen, a vet who specializes in
  compassion fatigue to speak at an AAZK meeting.
- Mo also found a roller rink on Long Island that is giving away
  the chance to host a fundraiser there. We are looking into it
- Mo also has a contact that works with the Turtle Survival Alliance
  that might come talk to our AAZK chapter about opportunities to
  receive grants to do field work.
- John from Central Park would like to look into hosting a Pints for Penguins
  event, and also explore if there is a central meeting area for events
  that are convenient to the different WCS parks.
- As always, NYC AAZK wants to hear your ideas! Want to host an event,
  organize a group clean up or fundraiser, let us know and we can help
  you facilitate the event! We would love to have keepers from around the
  different WCS parks participate and organize events around the city.

Upcoming AAZK Events:

Women's Leadership Meeting
  - Tuesday September 18th, Bronx Zoo
  - The WCS Women's Leadership Group wants to hear from WCS female keeper
    staff about their thoughts & opinions on what its like to work for WCS, and to have
    keeper voices included in the ongoing Women's Leadership discussions.
  - The meeting will be held at the Bronx Zoo. If anyone from the other parks
    would like to participate, let us know and we will figure out a way to get
    you involved in the meeting.

3rd Annual Croctoberfest
 - Date to be announced, Gun Hill Brewery
 - Looking into getting beer glasses & possibly T-shirts this year
 - Supports WCS Crocodilian conservation projects

Alamo Drafthouse Night
  - November date to be announced
  - We will be renting out a 25 seat theater at the Alamo in Yonkers and
    watching a newly released film.

Dr. Conway lecture
  - Date to be announced
  - He will be discussing his long and influential history with WCS

December AAZK Election:
- Interested in getting more involved in shaping NYC AAZK?
  We are always looking for eager, enthusiastic people to join the
  exec team! If you have any questions about any of the positions, please let
  us know. 

​New York Aquarium: 8/24/2018 

National Zoo Keeper Week:
- Thank you to all who gave keeper chats throughout the week
- Several keepers also wrote Wild View Blogs, and zoo keeper
  related blogs for the WCS blog site
- We made $1300 from our silent auction, which helps to cover
  chapter expenses, and can be utilized for future travel grants 

Queens Bat Walk:
- Special thanks to Colleen McCann, Mike Wrubel and Craig Gibbs
  for taking us around the Queens Zoo for a bat survey
- 12 AAZK members attended the bat walk 
- There was a ton of great bat activity, and a special bat detector app
  allowed us to identity each species, see the sound waves for each
  call, and hear the calls as well
Bowling for Rhinos:
- We made over $3500 and had 85 people were in attendance!
- The variety of events was a big hit, especially laser tag
- Thank you to Lauren Del Grosso organizing the event!
- Next year we will strive to have optional timed events so that there are
  group laser tag, ping pong, bowling sessions, etc
- Any other suggestions on how we can improve the event for next year
  would be greatly appreciated. 
New York Aquarium Night:
- Special thanks to the New York Aquarium staff, especially our tour guide
  Cris Silva for providing us with a behind the scenes tour of Ocean Wonders!
- 15 AAZK members attended the event, including representatives from
  the Bronx, Central Park and Queens Zoos. 

Bee Garden;
- Lauren Del Grosso would like to propose setting up a bee garden near
  the dump at the Bronx Zoo to attract bees, and help them as they
  continue to suffer from continued colony collapses
Upcoming AAZK Events:

Prospect Park Zoo Presentation Night
  - Tuesday September 4, 2018
  - PPZ keepers will be presenting about training, enrichment and will 
    give us the latest updates from PPZ
  - Pizza will be served

Women's Leadership Group Meeting
  - Date TBD in September
  - The WCS Women's Leadership Group is partnering with NYC AAZK
     and would like to hear from WCS female keepers about their views of
     working for WCS

3rd Annual Croctoberfest
  - Date TBD in October
  - Come out to to Gunhill Brewery to support WCS's crocodilian
    conservation efforts!

3rd Annual Alamo Drafthouse Night
 - November, after the switch over to winter hours
 - We will be renting out a private 25 seat theater at the Alamo
   Drafthouse in Yonkers to watch a newly released film

As always, and thoughts, or suggestions for future events would be
greatly appreciated! Want to host a fundraiser, organize a volunteer outing
or simply get more involved in AAZK? We will help facilitate any events
and ideas that are brought forward!

NYC AAZK Meeting Minutes: September 22, 2017 – Congo Movie Theatre, Bronx Zoo 

In attendance: Gabrielle Rosato, Jessica Chin, Brent Atkinson, Joe Borsellino, Omara Aviles, Joe Nappi
                           Carolyn Rezckalla, Guests: Sol (FOZ) + Guest, Leanne 

National Zoo Keeper Week:
- Thank you to all the keepers and staff that helped out to make this event a success!
- New Social Media glasses utilized to present keeper stories, great reception
- Silent Auction in new location in Schiff Hall made approximately $1000 for the chapter 

Bowling for Rhinos:
- $2,500 profit for the event
- Our overhead is eating into a lot of our profits. New ideas for next year? New location?
- Extra Special thanks to Amy for stepping in to head Bowling for Rhinos after Taylor left WCS
- Thank you to Sarah, and all the volunteers that helped out the night of the event! 

Hurricane Relief Movie Night Fundraiser:
- $300 raised, which will be donated to AZA’s Hurricane Harvey & Irma Employee Relief Fud 
- This money will help out zoo staff affected by the hurricanes in Texas and Florida 
- Thank you to all who came out to the movie night and helped raise money! 

Upcoming Events:
Thursday October 12: Beach Clean-up
    - Orchard Beach. Planning being coordinated by Lauren Del Grosso 
Thursday October 19: Croctoberfest 
     - Gunhill Brewery. Planning being coordinated by Reptile Department 
Monday November 13: Alamo Drafthouse Movie Night (tentative date)
     - Movie selection to be voted on (need to pick a movie already out on DVD to keep the cost down)
     - 26 seat theatre will be rented out exclusively for AAZK 
December: AAZK Executive Team Elections
     - We have several positions opening up this year. Think about running! Our team will guide you!
     - We will need a new treasurer and secretary this upcoming year 

2017 Donations to Date:
 - $300 to Trees for You and Me reforestation campaign 
 - $300 to AZA Hurricane Relief Fund
 - $360 to the Foundation for the Conservation of Salamanders
 - $500 to WCS Pakistan Program 
 - $2,565 Bowling for Rhinos Fund 
​

NYC AAZK Meeting – January 30, 2017

In attendance: Carolyn Rezkalla, Leela Samaroo, Michelle Blatz, Brent Atkinson, Leah Simoncek, Joe Borsellino, Tim Mohl, Nyssa Turner, Elizabeth Mills, Alyssa May, Amy Golden, Maryellen Constantino, Heather Tassler, Vanessa Jones, Taylor Ritz, Lauren DelGrosso, Bill Doyle, Lisa Walker, Joe Nappi

2017 NYC AAZK Exec Team:
Joe Nappi – President, Lisa Walker – New Vice President, Avi Shuter – Secretary, Amy Golden – Treasurer

2016 Year in Review:

March Ice Skating Conservation Fundraiser: $777 Trees for You and Me reforestation project
May Cinco de Rhino: $670 (put towards Bowling for Rhinos fund)
May Rented out private theatre at the Alamo Drafthouse
National Zoo Keeper Week Silent Auction: $1,600 (successful keeper chats, social media presence)
August Bronx River Alliance volunteering to clean up river
August Bowling for Rhinos: $7,000, 175 people attended
September Paint Night Fundraiser: $300 Baton Rouge Zoo keeper flood relief
Croctoberfest: $1,300 raised WCS Crocodilian conservation projects. Over 70 people attended

Dues: $15 members of AAZK National, $25 for non-national members 
- Benefits: Access to $1000 annual Travel Grant, discounts for AAZK events, voting on AAZK business, 
  priority reservations for upcoming Regional Symposium

Participation:
- We would like to make AAZK as inclusive as possible, and have people participate  to whatever level 
 they are most comfortable. Help shape the future of our chapter by joining one of our committees, or 
 by organizing your own event.
- Interested in organizing a particular volunteer outing? Want to raise money for a specific conservation 
 issue, animal or other cause? Reach out to us and we’ll help you organize your event! 

Committees: Inquire at nycaazk@gmail.com if you are interested in joining a committee!
Travel Grant: Review annual travel grant applications 
Conservation Committee: Help steer the chapter’s volunteering and fundraising efforts
World Animal Days: Help organize keeper talks and events revolving around World Animal Days
National Zoo Keeper Week: Join the committee to help put together this signature event. 
Bowling for Rhinos – Spearhead organizing AAZK’s largest annual fundraiser 

Animal Planet ‘Unofficial Premiere’
  - 50/50 Raffle to benefit NYC AAZK
  - Be sure to RSVP whether you are going or not to allow other zoo departments to be invited should 
   space permit. 


4th Annual Northeast Regional Symposium:
- Wednesday April 26, 2017 at the Bronx Zoo
- Up to 150 keepers will be admitted into the event
- 30 spots to be reserved for WCS keepers, with priority being given to NYC AAZK members
- Free zoo admission and parking for non WCS keepers
- Behind the Scenes tours will be offered during the day
- 15 keeper presentations in the evening, with a one hour pizza dinner break during the session
- March 1st: Deadline to submit presentation abstracts to nycaazk@gmail.com for review
- Flaherty Learning Center will be utilized for the presentations 
- Possible silent auction/other fundraising options during the event to raise additional money
- Funds from the symposium will go towards hosting a larger national AAZK conference down the road
- Suggestion (Vanessa Jones ) highlighting squeezes/enrichment at Bronx, encouraging keepers from 
  other zoos to bring photos of their zoo -equipment, enrichment, etc. 
- AAZK exec team will be setting up an interdepartmental meeting to help organize the event
- We are looking for keepers that are off Wednesdays to volunteer to help run the event

Chapter Fundraising Ideas:
Postcards
Calendars 
Ostrich eggs/Peacock feathers 
Enrichment at Home packet 
Honey from World Birds 

Up and Coming Events (all event dates not yet finalized): 
Enrichment Night with Families 
Ice Skating 
Alamo Drafthouse Night
Cinco de Salamander Fundraiser 
March Members Meeting ​

NYC AAZK General Meeting Minutes:
- Tuesday August 2, 2016
  Bronx Zoo – Dancing Crane Outdoor Seating

Present: E. Mowatt, A. Shuter, M. Blatz, J. Elkins, A. Armstrong, M. Medina, L. Simoncek,
K. Jones, H. Tassler, N. Turner, and J. Nappi (phone).

National Zoo Keeper Week
- Overall, the week was very successful and keepers were pleased with signage and help from
  the Education Department.
-Staff was curious about why Takeover posts were altered to use just three posts per keeper
-Idea was proposed for next year: that several WCS keepers be introduced daily throughout
 nzkw, rather than following one keeper per day.
- A meeting will be set up with Randi & Melissa to discuss the successes and areas of
 improvement for next year

Silent Auction:
- Approximately $1,600 made at the auction!
- Next auction will take place during the Holiday Season

Bowling for Rhinos:
- Buy your tickets! Visit the NYC AAZK website http://nycaazk.blogspot.com/ for purchase
- Monday August 15th
- Erin recruited a few people to volunteer setting up for the event.

Bronx River Alliance Clean-up:
- Joe met with Joseph Sanchez, outreach coordinator & Michelle Luebke, ecology director
- Monday August 8th Bronx River Clean-up
- There was interest in the field trip though not many solid commitments yet.
- The Alliance is very excited to meet with our chapter, and is planning future projects with us.
- Looking into a fall invasive plant removal project & future river clean-up events

Paint Bar Night:
- September: Location is still TBD.

Croctoberfest:
- Beer drinking for croc fundraising at Gun Hill Brewery – Chinese Alligators

Family Keeper Presentation & Enrichment Night:
- Still looking for a time… likely in November
- Elizabeth Mills is spear heading this event.

December:
- Holiday Silent Auction

Travel Grant Report:
-Michelle Medina – Felid Tag overview (recipient of $1000 AAZK Travel Grant)
-Conference dealt mainly with safety. Relied heavily on the book “Emotional Intelligence 2.0.”
-Michelle stressed that keepers should be alert when unlocking locks (“Your keys are a loaded
 weapon”), and shouldn’t be afraid to ask colleagues for help or support. Just Cause was also
 discussed, i.e. the difference between intentional and unintentional mistakes.

Safety Drills:
-Keepers expressed significant concern about a lack of knowledge of what to do during
emergencies (animal escapes, active shooter situations, etc.), and requested a conversation with Admin about increasing occurrence of drills.
​

NYC AAZK Meeting: Friday March 18, 2016
Bronx Zoo Curator’s Room 

In Attendance:
Joe Nappi, Erin Mowatt, Amy Golden, Juliet Elkins, Amanda Scherer, Brent Atkinson, Heather Tassler, Bonnie Glover, Mary Gremler, Elizabeth Mills, Kevin Hills, Mike McCue, Erin Minnock, Amanda Hackett, Aniko Totha, Taylor Ritz, Michelle Medina, Jen Loveless, Joe Borsellino, Sara Koplish, Nyssa Turner, Jessica Chin. (We currently have approximately 12 members, 10 present at meeting) 

Treasurer’s Report: Amy 
- Re-charter successfully submitted 
- Dues $15 for members of National AAZK, $25 for people that are not a national member
--------------------------------------------------------
Bowling for Rhinos: Amy Golden 
- Monday August 15th tentatively scheduled
- Same bowling alley as last year in Queens 
- Second bar tender requested
--------------------------------------------------------
Grant Committee:
- Members present at the meeting  voted for the April 1st deadline to remain for 2016 and for the 
  deadline to be moved to August 1st starting in 2017 to coincide with the awarding of AEP grants. 
- Grant applications available at http://nycaazk.blogspot.com/p/travel-grant.html
--------------------------------------------------------
Cinco de Rhino:
- Looking into catering Mexican food in Flaherty and have attendees pay a nominal fee for entrance to 
  the event
- This will help jump start our Bowling for Rhinos fundraising campaign 
-------------------------------
Logo Contest:
- Criteria: NYC themed, animals representing our various parks/depts, must say New York City AAZK
- Joe Borsellino’s dad is a graphic artist. Can transfer and enhance sketches to the computer.
- Deadline May 1st 
-------------------------------
Ice Skating Fundraiser:
- Sunday March 20th, 5:20-7:20 pm 
- Murray Memorial Skating Rink, Yonkers 
- $20, paid at the door. Each guest will receive a ticket that they will redeem at the skate rental desk 
- We are getting a group discount. Half of your admission price will go to conservation 
- Pitches made for what conservation group we want to support
       . Cheetah Conservation Fund – Jessica Chin
       . Jane Goodall’s Roots & Chutes – Juliet Elkins 
       . Polar Bear International – Jen Loveless 
       . Trees for You and Me (collaboration between AAZK & Polar Bear International) – Joe Nappi 
- Members voted for Trees for You and Me to be the recipient of our Ice Skating money. There is a 
  competition amongst all AAZK chapters to raise the most money for Trees for You and Me 
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
National Zoo Keeper Week: 
- Saturday July 16th through Sunday July 24th
- Keeper Gift: What should it be? Should we do one? Heather brought a catalog to the meeting 
   - Gift ideas: beer glasses, tote bag w/ Nalgene, gift that supports a conservation group, etc. 
   - Traditionally have spent $600-800 per year on past gifts
   - Should we have a special gifts for members of AAZK? 
   - We will vote at a future meeting if we want to put up funds for buying gifts 

Social Media: 
 -Wild View Blogs: try to get keepers from the different parks. Posts for every day of National Zoo Keeper 
  Week. Let us know if you are potentially interested in contributing. 
- Twitter Take-over 
- Roving keepers during a particular hour each day. Stand in front of your favorite animal. Informal chats
- Keeper hourly posts on social media “Day in the life of a keeper.” All posts will be written in advance 
  with an accompanying photo and will be posted throughout the day by social media. 

National Zoo Keeper Week Interdepartmental meeting tentatively scheduled for April 9th. 
---------------------------------------------------------------
Melissa Nelson Training & Enrichment Newsletter
 - AEP Grant summaries a potential feature of the newsletters 
 - Training and enrichment stories. 
 - Let us/Melissa know if you are interested in contributing 
---------------------------------------------------------------
AAZK Craft Fair: Elizabeth Mills
  - Craft fair could be instead of and/or during traditional AAZK Silent Auctions 
  - Donors/AAZK would benefit from items sold (split the profits, most of which would go to the donor. 
    encourage more participation in donating/get more items for auctions). 
  - Survey of interest to be sent out 
---------------------------------------------------------------
Committee Sign-ups:
- Bowling for Rhinos: Cindy Maur, Amy Golden
    . New sign-ups: Brent Atkinson, Bonnie Glover, Sara Koplish, Amanda Hackett 
- National Zoo Keeper Week: Cindy Maur, Heather Tassler, Lisa Walker, Avi Shuter, Erin Mowatt, Joe N. 
    . New sign-ups: Brent Atkinson, Elizabeth Mills, Erin Minnock, Amanda Hackett 
- Travel Grant Committee: Joe Nappi
    . New sign-ups: Brent Atkinson, Bonnie Glover, Aniko Totha 
- Conservation Committee/World Animal Days 
    . New committee to help steer AAZK conservation fundraisers/volunteering/World Animal Day events 
    . Sign-ups: Joe Nappi, Erin Mowatt, Elizabeth Mills, Jen Loveless 
- Enrichment Bonanza: Elizabeth Mills (pushing for keeper families to be involved this year) 
    . New sign-ups: Brent Atkinson 
---------------------------------------------------------------
Next AAZK Meeting Tentatively Scheduled for the end of May…
  - We are looking into an after hours social event for April (movie night, guest lecturer, etc.) 
       . Let us know if you have ideas! ​