Letters on zoo, art museum sculpture

Thanks for big thinking on zoo

Kudos to everyone responsible for making our zoo’s new elephant exhibit a reality.

I’ve been watching Cinda and Stephanie ever since their arrival in 1972, and my heart ached to see them in such small surroundings. Even though I knew their existence in the wild would have been fraught with danger, I longed to see them have an environment where they could be part of a herd, have access to water to bathe and play in, and have room to roam. Over the years, I’ve wished they could move to an elephant preserve where they could have these qualities of life. But I also knew that if every elephant in the world’s zoos were put in preserves, there could never be enough preserves to accommodate them. The only answer? Enlarge and enrich the environment they already have.

The Sedgwick County Zoo is a world-class zoo, because of the progressive thinking of its directors past and present; the planners and designers of its habitats and structures; county commissioners who see the bigger picture; and the support of donors, members and ticket buyers who appreciate what we have. To think small – to scale back plans for the zoo or start shipping out animals that are expensive to maintain – would be small-town thinking.

Wichita isn’t a small town. It’s the biggest city in Kansas, and we need to think big. Our zoo, in the past and in the future, reflects that. I’m proud to be one of its members.

Something wrong

Something must be wrong somewhere. When I read that Sedgwick County commissioners are investing millions of dollars to construct housing for elephants captured in the wild (Sept. 18 Eagle), while closing the Judge Riddel Boys Ranch at Lake Afton and turning their backs on our young men with problems adjusting to society, I think I know what it is. We need to move some of our county commissioners into the million-dollar housing they voted to fund at the Sedgwick County Zoo, and send some new and pragmatic individuals to replace them on the commission.

Not welcoming

I’m aware the Wichita Art Museum is considering making changes to the facility and grounds. With no disrespect to the artist, I find the work “Dreamers Awake” at the museum a disappointment, both in its selection and location. Notwithstanding the artist’s description of its meaning, I believe one’s first impression of the museum shouldn’t be one that evokes such a disconcerting sense of doom and disaster.

I do not stand alone in this perception and would appreciate a more welcoming and inviting work to represent the quality and wonderful nature of the Wichita Art Museum.

This story was originally published September 22, 2014 at 7:07 PM with the headline "Letters on zoo, art museum sculpture."