Debbie Murphy

There were a lot of life journeys that led me to Taproot Guru.

On every single one of them, there was a lesson to learn. Looking back, the lessons I have enjoyed the most have had their roots in the world of nature and being able to share those discoveries with others.

For years I have been living with the strong desire to make a positive difference in this world. Unfortunately, it always seemed too broad a scope to really accomplish anything.

Then one morning, life nudged me to just stop and listen ... I found myself hearing a news broadcast about a brown bear being found in a local neighborhood and that we should “beware” ... And the word “beware” really caught my attention ... Beware? Be afraid? Be wary of our wildlife?

Well, here’s the problem, i thought! How the heck can we be asking people to co-exist with critters on this planet when we have put it into their heads that wildlife is scary? The more I thought about that and the more I listened to what is continually being broadcasted to we earth stewards, I began to see a real opening for change.

As long as everyone is a student of life anyway, let’s just do some re-teaching. Let’s turn some of this negativity around ... let’s remind people that we are indeed all members of Spaceship Earth. Everything on this Earth is connected and it’s darn well time we all realized that we need each other to survive. We sure do need to start playing nice!

Out of the blue ... a good friend says “let’s start a non-profit ... about animals” and I said, well, as a matter of fact, I’ve been thinking of just the one we need to create!

Taproot Guru is now a non-profit organization which deals with positives. We address negative with positive because, heaven knows, we have way too much negativity in our lives today. Too much conflict ... too much intolerance ... too much criticism ... too much, too much, too much!

For this journey, I, first and foremost, contribute a love for animals and a passion to pass that love to others. I bring along a B.A. in Anthropology, a lot of years in the non-profit world with some nice educational program successes along the way.

I have had the incredible experience of working with and being inspired by some very fine role models: Dr. Jane Goodall, Bill Nye, Dr. Richard Murphy of Ocean’s Future, Greenpeace, Buckminster Fuller Institute, Dr. Kathie Amidei ..... people and organizations that demonstrated that education and passion is what drives change.

I want to drive change ... in my own small way.

Welcome, everyone, to Taproot Guru!

Maria Casolaro

As a child, my parents shared my love of animals, so we always had a home filled with puppies, kittens, birds, fish, guinea pigs, bunnies etc! As soon as I was old enough, I was always ‘rescuing’ animals in distress. I once ended up with nips on both my thumbs while trying to rescue a baby Squirrel, who I realize now was just happily playing in a pile of leaves and needed no rescuing! Another time I ended up with a sprained ankle and assorted bruises when I fell off a fence, trying to rescue a cat. The odds are she was just playing in her own yard! Looking back, I think it’s safe to say that both of these creatures were just fine and not in need of my help, however in my young mind back then, I had to save every animal, and as an adult, I still wish I could do just that!!

Sadly, in all the years that have passed since those innocent days, the creatures of planet Earth now do indeed need to be saved…we need to lend our voices to those who cannot speak…there are so many myths and misconceptions about wildlife that need to be addressed.

My heart, my desire and my need to help animals have not changed in all these years, but I go about it with way more knowledge under my belt these days. That is why I am so honored to be a part of Taproot Guru…an organization that will be a true voice for all the creatures of the Earth. Through education and the sage wisdom Taproot Guru offers, I will continue, along with all of you, to learn all there is to know about animals, and spread the truth about them far and wide. Where there is wisdom there is compassion, and if we truly want to save our brothers and sisters of the animal kingdom, knowledge is their best friend!!

Annette Aldridge

From the time that I was a little girl I loved and admired animals. Growing up in Florida, I watched sea turtles lay their eggs, swam with porpoise, and climbed trees to commune and learn from the birds. As I grew older I worked with Erna Nixon to establish the Erna Nixon Hammock and the Carlton Teat Foundation to establish safe zones and rescue centers for indigenous animals. More than once I rescued birds, squirrels, turtles and snakes (very unpopular with my mother), nursed them to health and returned them to their homes. Lunches during high school were spent eating outdoors with the squirrels and birds, enjoying their company and learning from them.

Even though I went on to earn BS’s in Mathematics and Computer Science, all of my electives and seminars were animal-based. In 1985 I moved to Colorado and continued to learn all I could about every animal I encountered or ever read about. I was fortunate to have the opportunity to establish and teach science, ecology, and animal biology/behavior in enrichment programs, Boys & Girls Clubs and outdoor camps, as well as work with excellent organizations like YNP, Audubon, Sierra Club, Plant a Million trees Foundation, etc.

Who am I really? I am the “crazy” human who stops traffic and protects a snake making its way across the busy road. I carry gloves in my vehicle to remove a fallen comrade from the roadway so that fellow animals can dine in safety, and stop my car to release a trapped insect safely. I take every opportunity that I can in my daily life to use human-animal interactions as teachable moments, explaining that animals are not mean, scary, helpless, or “icky.” Knowledge creates understanding, compassion, and love. I know that humans, animals, and the planet are in symbiosis and the actions of each one of us affects the others, whether positively or negatively.

I have always wanted to reach even more people and to teach and advocate for our fellow creatures. Several years ago I began to see a trend in the media “villainizing” animals. Even the word “animal” carries a negative connotation within our society—why? When speaking with a friend I realized that we both carried the same love and passion for our planet and ALL of its inhabitants….and Taproot Guru was born!

It is my hope that Taproot Guru will connect us all to answer questions, dispel myths and rumors, and make learning fun. Welcome. I am so happy that you have joined the global movement to give ALL animals a voice!

Stephen Curro

I've always had a hard time picking a favorite animal.

Whales are certainly close to the top of the list. They're so majestic and they have beautiful voices and they're just so big! But then there are wolves, the ancestors of the dogs we love and cherish, wild and yet social, beautiful and primal. Butterflies have also held my imagination, with their different shapes and colors seeming to come in an infinite variety. Pangolins are a strange creature, armored mammals little-known in the West but well-known in Africa and Asia. And of course there are the dinosaurs, awesome beasts that are no longer with us but once ruled the Earth for 140 million years. The list goes on. But the fact is I love all animals. I always have. They are much more than dumb creatures who happen to live on our planet. Indeed, this planet belonged to them long before humans came into existence. They think, they feel, they live just as you or I. To me they are proof that a higher power exists, and they enrich our planet as well as our souls. If so much as a spider wanders inside, I catch it and let it go in the backyard. Why kill a creature that means you no harm?

Growing up, my mother made me aware of environmental issues, like the persecution of wolves in Alaska or plastic that tangles sea turtles. My father meanwhile is an avid fisherman to this day, and he gave me opportunities to get out of the city and into nature where the animals really live. In seventh grade my aunt Barbara gave me my first copy of Smithsonian: Animal, an encyclopedia that I often stayed up late to read. We've had many wonderful dogs in the family, as well as fish and at one point a bird and a hamster.

As life went on I found a passion for education. I've worked in a variety of settings from classrooms to tutoring to outdoor education with Dinosaur Ridge. Currently I'm working as a paraprofessional with GOAL High School in Windsor, Colorado. I want to help students reach their full potential in the classroom and in life, but I also want to help young people become environmental stewards. Education is the best weapon against ignorance and inaction. By learning about the world of the past and the world of the present, it will make people more aware of what the world might be like in the future.

When I was asked to join Taproot Guru, I jumped at the chance. I'm always looking for ways to help the natural world. Animals need our help now more than ever. Why? Because they make the world so much more interesting. Because their health is tied to our own. Because compassion should not just stop on the human level, it must extend to all beings because they are alive the same as we are. Because our children will one day take over this world, and I don't want them to inherit a barren world lacking in color and life.

Of course extinction is a regular occurrence in the geologic record. 95% of all creatures that have ever lived are no longer with us. But for the first time in Earth's history animals are going extinct due to a most unnatural cause: greed. It pains my heart to see species wink out of existence just because a few humans wanted to make quick buck. This we cannot allow. We have some rough times ahead of us, but I know that we can preserve the Animal Kingdom. And that's why I'm a Taproot Guru."