Craig Newmark Philanthropies Grants Palomacy $20,000!

Bird Nerd? Avianthropist? Columbiformephile? Who is this hero of Palomacy? Craig Newmark, a self-described old-school nerd doing what he can “to support the people who fight to protect the values that America aspires to: fairness, opportunity and respect” extends his compassion even to the birds.

His foundation, Craig Newmark Philanthropies’ mission “to support and connect people and drive broad civic engagement, working to advance grassroots organizations that are effective and getting stuff done”, coupled with his appreciation for pigeons, perfectly dovetails with Palomacy’s work and ever since we connected in 2013, Craig’s support has helped keep Palomacy aloft.

Palomacy (which means pigeon diplomacy) was hatched to correct a strange and deadly gap in animal welfare. Humans have been breeding, using and endangering pigeons – as meat and messengers, for sport, hobby, and ceremony – for thousands of years and still do- in the many millions. And yet, when lost, hurt or displaced as so many inevitably are, they have been traditionally refused help, turned away as a “pest species”, both for being non-native and for being domestic, by the vast majority of shelters and rescues. Palomacy has been working, since 2007, to help fix this. We save the lives of those otherwise unserved: domestic, unreleasable pigeons and doves that are injured, lost, displaced and abandoned and in doing so, we are creating understanding, appreciation and supporters for these amazing birds.

The denial of care is especially egregious considering how closely connected humans and pigeons have been throughout history. And how numerous they are. Palomacy is called upon, at an ever-increasing rate, to rescue, foster, vet treat and place hundreds of helpless, hurt birds in Northern California that would otherwise be killed. We also provide 24/7/365 care coaching, referrals, advocacy and education worldwide via our 12K member online Help Group and website resources, helping others to save the lives of thousands more. In 2020, our placements increased 58%. Our website visits doubled. We, 1.5 staff and 150 incredibly dedicated volunteers, are responding to more than 1,200 requests for help every month.

We could not sustain this effort without the amazing generosity of our supporters and Craig is our most generous!

Palomacy shares Craig Newmark Philanthropies’ commitment to making “sure everyone is included and treated fairly and respectfully”. We believe that everyone deserves compassion, everyone deserves a chance. Learning the truth about pigeons, who are so routinely mistreated, is a gateway to compassion that Palomacy leverages every day, to everyone’s benefit. Our position is: compassion for all, including the pigeons and doves living their gentle lives in our hard world.

Thank you, Craig and team, for all that you do to help so many!