Residents of Riverside may have been punked last year, but folks in Casey and Adair are being “pinked,” for a good cause. Tracy Stetzel, President of the Adair-Casey Community School Foundation says the invasion of brightly-colored plastic flamingoes is part of a fund-raising effort. She says the flamingos will “pop up” in people’s yards, and they can either pay to have them removed, or pay to have them moved to someone else’s yard. Either way, the money goes toward projects that “enhance the educational experiences” for students in the local public school. Stetzel says previous fundraising efforts have accomplished great things in the district. They’ve enabled kids to attend drama workshops, plays and art exhibits, and have paid for things like a skeleton for the biology department and a digital camera for the yearbook. Flocks of the two and a-half foot tall flamingos have already been placed in Adair, and Stetzel says they’ll continue to “migrate” into both communities, until the public interest wanes. She says for ten dollars, residents can place a flock in someone’s yard. That person can have them transferred to another yard by donating 10-dollars. The birds will stay in each yard for no more than three-days. Residents can avoid being “pinked,” by paying for the “flamingo protection” service. “If you would not like the flamingos to come to your yard ever,” she laughs, “for twenty dollars we’ll ensure that they don’t come.” Tracy says the flamingos are harmless, and fun to be around. Some people take advantage of the program to salute friends or note a special event.She says for special occasions, the entire flock of thirty plastic flamingos will gather in a yard, for a 50-dollar donation.
