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Madison Family Raises Nearly $600 with ‘Turning Two at the Zoo’ Birthday Party

In a world where everything has come to a halt due to the COVID-19 crisis, that could include birthday parties, too. The D’Antonio family of Madison found a creative way to celebrate its son Marino’s second birthday, however, and raise money at the same time for Connecticut’s Beardsley Zoo.

“Marino was excited to turn two at the zoo,” said his mother, Amy D’Antonio.

Once the zoo closed on March 17, all birthday parties were canceled.

Since she and her husband Ralph D’Antonio couldn’t take him to the zoo, she said, “we decided to bring the zoo to him.”

It was Marino’s six-year-old brother Massimo’s idea to hold an outdoor turning two at the zoo party.

“Massimo was very excited to make the day special for his brother,” D’Antonio said.

The family decorated with signs and stuffed animals, and asked friends and family to donate to help the zoo meet ongoing operational expenses. During the party, friends drove by and waved from their cars, then collectively donated $585 for the zoo’s emergency fund.

Connecticut’s Beardsley Zoo has begun a family-based initiative called “Do You Have a Zoo at Your House?” and has asked children to send drawings and letters to the animals, as well as photos of how they’ve made their home into a zoo. In addition, the zoo is grateful for any size donation to the emergency operating fund to assist in the care of animals and team members. Donations can be sent to www.beardsleyzoo.org/emergency-fund.html.