Community leaders Annette and John Schnatter announced a $1 million personal commitment to the Louisville Zoo’s Glacier Run project. This gift is in addition to the Schnatters’ $100,000 previous campaign gift, and brings the Glacier Run campaign total to more than $12.6 million toward its $25 million estimated cost.

Glacier Run will mimic a village on the edge of the Arctic Circle. The exhibit will educate visitors about the most important global issues of our time and inspire action in bettering the bond between people and our planet. It will house many animals, including polar bears, seals, sea lions and Steller’s sea eagles.

“Glacier Run will be a trailblazing exhibit that will set a new standard for zoos across the country,” Mayor Jerry Abramson said. “But the Schnatters’ donation is more than just money for a zoo exhibit. This is an investment in education. The Zoo holds more than 300 classes on Zoo grounds each year, and thousands of students across the Commonwealth and our region benefit from free science education through the Zoo to You Program. Altogether the Zoo reaches well over 80,000 students each year and that doesn’t even include the other 300,000 or so that come for a family visit!”

Louisville Zoo Director John Walczak and Louisville Zoo Board Director Mark Wheeler are grateful for the Schnatters’ personal gift and commitment to the Zoo.

“We are fortunate to have community leaders like Annette and John supporting this timely and imperative endeavor,” Wheeler said. “Glacier Run will bring great value to the state and region, and with the Schnatters’ gift, we are now one step closer to making it a reality.”

The construction of the new $25 million Glacier Run project is set to increase annual Zoo attendance to more than 900,000 and bring an economic impact of more than $32 million in new spending and nearly $3 million in local and state revenues for Kentucky the year after opening.

“This is a place where wonder and marvel touch each person who walks through the gate,” said Annette Schnatter, who serves as a Louisville Zoo board member. “The Zoo is a place for quality family fun and is also an integral part of the fabric of Louisville and the state of Kentucky. With this gift, John and I are pleased to be investing in the future of not only Louisville and the state of Kentucky, but every young person that comes through the gate.”

In honor of the Schnatters’ gift, the Zoo also announced today the new naming of the Zoo’s splash park: Calistoga Splash Park at Glacier Run.

Calistoga Bakery Cafe, the latest restaurant concept in which John Schnatter is involved, is an upscale sandwich shop featuring gourmet sandwiches, soups and salads, as well as delicious artisan breads and pastries and custom-roasted coffees and espresso. Calistoga offers free WiFi, free coffee refills and a relaxed atmosphere where patrons are invited to take a break and enjoy “the simple life.” Kentucky locations are expected to open in the first quarter of 2008.