" their enthusiasm & optimism they gave us energy & reasons to keep doing what we've been doing " - Gudrun, Amazon Animal Rescue Centre

Dear friends and supporters of Girls on Top!

I know that behind the Girls on Top there are many more people & I want to thank all of you for helping the girls help us, and for all the hard work that went in to the project on our behalf last year.

Last October Emma, Jade & Saffy came to visit Pilpintuwasi. I remember very well the day they arrived. I was a bit nervous when I went to the airport to wait for them - I had been writing e-mails with Jade to plan the visit & help her research but I didn't know what she looked like, nor did I know Emma or Saffy. As it turned out it was easy to spot them - three sunburned girls with heaps of luggage-they even had a big sack of lettuce for the manatee with them, a box of fruit & about six hot water bottles specially made for our baby animals, with bells on!

From the first moment on I was impressed by their energetic spirit. They had hiked up in the Andes & now coming down to humid, hot Amazon they wanted to do something for us - & start immediately. Emma, Jade & Saffy created a new shop for us & a place to welcome & educate our visitors. They travelled all over the area gathering paint, brushes, wood, screens, handmade wooden & ceramic animals, earrings, caps & other things related to butterflies or our rescued animals. They restored the little hut from top to bottom, painting & decorating it, making new benches & mosaics on the floor - it is really quite lovely.

The days the Girls on Top stayed in our village passed much too quickly. The day we clebrated the opening of our shop was also a good-bye party & people from the village came to celebrate the team's visit & work with music, dancing & treats. My partner Robler & I were really sad when they left.The three of them have done something perhaps even more important than the work at the shop. With their enthusiasm & optimism they gave us energy & reasons to keep doing what we've been doing - even when the circumstances are sometimes difficult.

As well as this, we received their donation - a gift created by this team of women who we did not even know at the start, and by many of you who may read this who supported their fundrising. I know that it was certainly not an easy job to do this, I really want to thank all the people who helped. With that money we will make a new fence around our land. We have already bought 600 posts, liquid to protect the wood against humidity,10 rolls of barbed wire & fence nails.The actual work started in April 2006 with 6 people from the village.We planned to finish the project in about 2 months,but it is high water season so we will have to wait until the water has gone down by about 10 metres to finish everything. We also notice we will need an alternative to wire because it will not last underwater - has anybody got a good idea?

Now I have to go back to Pilpintuwasi, we've got some baby monkeys waiting for 'Mum'. Thank you all again - not only for the work & your donation, but for considering our butterfly breeding, rescue & educational work worthy of your support. If any friend of the Girls on Top comes to visit Peru - you know you've got a home at Pilpintuwasi, we'd be very happy to welcome you here.

Best wishes to everybody & keep on doing your good work.

       Love from Gudrun (& Robler & all the animals)