We stayed for a few minutes one looking to the other. Only orangutans have the attitude of looking deeply the unknown human, who is outside the fence. They think this one could have been one of the responsible for them to live in captivity. The magnificence of Pongo, an orangutan taken off entertainment exploitation when he was a baby and treated as an important being at this model sanctuary in Florida, represents everyone.

Located 100 km to the north of Okeechobe Lake, one of the biggest of the world, in Wauchula, at the center of Florida, the sanctuary Center for Great Apes hosts 42 great primates, among them chimpanzees and orangutans. And a great number of them came from Hollywood and the world of entertainment.

Patti Ragan, creator of the sanctuary, started with a baby orangutan, whom she accompanied since he was a newborn. Today he is a well behaved adult. Other cases are Bubble, a chimpanzee bought and kept by Michael Jackson for five years and then delivered to his animal trainer, who ended up giving him to the sanctuary; Knuckles, who had little oxygenation on his brain when he was born and has sequels as he walks and needs special care; and an orangutan with no arms, called Mari, who walks on her two feet and was able to survive to the mutilation caused by her disturbed mother. And there many other dramatic stories.

Patti is a fighter for the great primates. She maintains the marvelous sanctuary with donations, helping singular individuals with different and surprising stories. Patty is anxious because the economic crisis hit every sanctuary – a total of tem in the United States – and growing list of primates is waiting for a vacancy to move to Wauchula and enjoy the peace, quiet, love and dedication of a dozen of humans who take care of these beings as they were their children.

A few years ago a hurricane practically destroyed the sanctuary, which had to be almost rebuilt. She and her primates had the scare experience of facing a big hurricane and together they survived.

We, who started like her, with a baby primate, and built a sanctuary, know about the hard task. Even more in her case, who depends of funds donated by others. We know about the pain, the anger and the lack of hope that hit us in a lot of moments, when we are not able to reach our goals of saving them and find in our way people who say they are humans and show their anger, envy and primitive feelings to, not allowing that some of them let their terrible lives to go to an environment in which they will be treated with respect and will receive love of their equals.

Nevertheless, when we left Wauchula and got deeply emotional with those magnificence beings, who do not know what it is to hate, our will get stronger and our decisions remain firm. We want to take all the great primates of the miserable life they experience, being exploited by people who do not deserve to be humans.

Visit the website www.centerforgreatapes.org

Dr. Pedro A. Ynterian
President, GAP Project International