Name a Roach for Valentine's Day

Julie Larsen Maher / Bronx Zoo

Looking for a funny way to show some affection for your mother-in-law, be goofy with your kids, or show a wacky love of nature to your significant other in celebrating Valentine's Day this year?  Or maybe you're looking for a way to let an ex know they did you wrong in a spirited but non-threatening way.  Name a roach after them.

The Bronx Zoo has an extensive number of Madagascar hissing cockroaches in its insect exhibit and they'll let you name a roach after someone for Valentine's Day.  Who wouldn't be endeared to know there is a hissing cockroach climbing around a display at New York City's famed Bronx Zoo sharing their name thanks to you.  By participating in this off-the-wall fundraiser you can have a bit of fun at someone else's expense. Well actually it will be at your expense because you need to make a donation to the Bronx Zoo's Wildlife Conservation Society to name one of the zoo's lovely Madagascar hissing cockroaches but hey it'll be a tax deductible Valentine's Day present.
 
For $10 tax deductible donation the Bronx Zoo will send out to your designated recipient a digital certificate like the one below letting them know the honor you've bestowed upon them.  If you'd like a personalized message can also be included within the certificate where you can wax poetic about your inspiration for the gift.

Want to be a bit more romantic?  For $25 the Wildlife Conservation Society will mail a printed roach certificate along with something sweet made by the Nunu Chocolate company in Brooklyn, New York.  Only $12 dollars of this gift is tax deductible but this option also includes chocolate being mailed to your special somebody.  If you want your gift to arrive in the mail by Valentine's Day orders must be placed by Tuesday, February 2, 2016.

To name a roach after someone for Valentine's Day, visit bronxzoo.com/roach

According to the Wildlife Conservation Society, donations will help protect these misunderstood love bugs along with a lot of other animals big and small.  I'm sure you'll get some people hissing at you on Valentine's Day with this approach to showing your love, or disdain, for someone but if you are scampering around for something unique to do this year why not have some fun naming a cockroach.

Droids Need Hugs Too: R2-KT Valentine's Day Patch Raises Money for Make-A-Wish

When you see stormtroopers and other Star Wars characters at public events they are normally part of an organization of move fans called the 501st Legion whose members focus on creating authentic-looking costumes for cosplay, special appearances, and charitable work.  Since being formed by Albin Johnson in 1997 the group has expanded from a handful of people carefully recreating stormtrooper uniforms to having more than 6,500 active members with "garrisons" located throughout the world portraying Star Wars bad guys ranging from Tusken Raiders to TIE fighter pilots.  Locally, we have a very active group called the Great Lakes Garrison: 501st Legion - Michigan Chapter which is involved in events such as the Detroit Tigers Star Wars Night, Free Comic Book Day, Star Wars Reads Day, and the Great Lakes Comic-Con among numerous other appearances throughout the year.  Across the country you will also occasionally encounter a pink astromech droid named R2-KT making an appearance with members of the 501st Legion to meet with children in a hospital or promote the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

courtesy www.r2kt.com

For a $7 donation with proceeds benefiting Make-A-Wish you can purchase a R2-KT Valentine's Day embroidered patch designed by Juan José Matamoros featuring the little pink droid showing some love to the 501st Legion members who always wear uniforms of the color that symbolizes this special day.  There will be a limited number of these patches made and delivery is scheduled to be by Valentine's Day (Feb 14) so if you are interested get your order in now!  $7 via paypal to r2kt@r2kt.com  I know my daughter likes to have us sew patches like these on her backpack for school so this will be a special treat for her.

There is a special story behind R2-KT.  In 2005 a little girl named Katie was diagnosed with terminal brain cancer. Katie loved Star Wars (like her father Ablin - the founder of the 501st Legion) and loved the color pink. When her health declined to the point she couldn't get out of bed, she said she wished she had a droid to watch over her like R2-D2 watched over a sleeping Padme in the Star Wars movie Attack of the Clones.  Word of Katie's illness spread throughout the Star Wars fan community and another club of fans that makes authentic recreations of droids from the Star Wars movies called The R2 Builders knew this was a job for them, and in mere months they constructed a custom R2 unit all painted in pink and dubbed her R2-KT. It rolled, it blinked, it even talked: Katie had a droid to watch over her! And she kept KT by her bedside through her final days.  Katie passed away peacefully in her sleep on August 9, 2005.

Katie's legacy lives on in her pink companion. R2-KT now tours the world, spreading the joy to Star Wars fans and a message of hope for kids who suffer childhood illnesses. R2-KT attends fan conventions, visits sick children in hospitals, appears in parades, inspires young girls that Star Wars has a place for them, and helps raise funds for a wide range of charities. In 2007 Hasbro produced an R2-KT action figure, which raised $100,000 for the Make-A-Wish Foundation. In 2008 Dave Filoni of Lucasfilm featured the droid in a cameo role in the Clone Wars animated feature film, making her a canon member of the Star Wars universe! In 2013 KT appeared in the Star Wars Weekends parade in Disney World, then traveled to be a guest of honor at Celebration Europe II in Germany. R2-KT has become a symbol of everything Star Wars fandom has come to represent: spreading the magic of hope. 

courtesy www.r2kt.com

For more information about R2-KT visit  www.r2kt.com

courtesy www.r2kt.com