Georgia Aquarium Articles ...

ATLANTA BUSINESS CHRONICLE
2/14/05
Georgia Aquarium launches fund-raising drive


The Georgia Aquarium said it plans to raise money by selling thousands of personalized lighted fish that will appear on an 80-foot wall in a high visibility area of the new building.

Each so-called "FishScale" will sell for $55 and can have a name or personal message placed on it.

Donna Fleishman, a spokeswoman for the aquarium, said she did not know how many of the FishScales could be sold but said it will be in the thousands. The aquarium, which is now under construction in downtown Atlanta, has just a couple of months to sell the FishScales because the wall they will appear on has to be built, she said.

She said the money raised would be used to promote the mission of the aquarium, but not used to pay for the building itself. Bernard Marcus, co-founder of The Home Depot Inc., provided a gift of $200 million for what will be the largest aquarium in the United States. The aquarium will open debt free.

When the aquarium opens in late 2005, visitors will be able to type in the name of a FishScales recipient and the location of the FishScales will be identified by blinking lights on the wall.

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