Last year, as the month of May approached, Dawn Baksh from Orlando, Fla., was contemplating what to get her mom for Mother’s Day.

“I just wanted to give her something different, a little more thoughtful,” said Dawn. Like many others in Florida and around the country, Dawn decided to adopt a manatee for her mom, Cindy Tivey, also from Orlando. She contacted Save the Manatee Club, a national, nonprofit organization, dedicated to protecting endangered manatees and their habitat.

Dawn chose Ginger from the Club’s Tampa Bay manatee adoption program. “She just seemed sweet with her babies and all,” Dawn said. “My mom loved the adoption. Plus she really wants grandkids, so I thought a manatee adoption would be perfect! Seriously though, I believe I got a tear or two with that Mother’s Day gift.”

Adopting a manatee costs $25, and it includes an adoption certificate, manatee photo, biography, membership handbook and free shipping. Members also receive a subscription to the Club’s official quarterly newsletter, The Manatee Zone, and the bi-monthly e-newsletter, Paddle Tales. Or, for $35, each new member who joins the Adopt-A-Manatee program online will receive a cute, colorful manatee coin purse that you can wrap up along with mom’s gift adoption, or just keep for yourself.

Save the Manatee Club was founded in 1981 by singer/songwriter Jimmy Buffett and former Florida governor Bob Graham. Funds from the club’s adoption programs go toward numerous education and conservation efforts. Last year was the worst on record for manatees, with 416 reported manatee deaths. At least 86 were killed by boat strikes, making it the second highest mortality from watercraft collisions ever recorded. About 3,000 manatees live in Florida’s waterways, and they are listed as endangered by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service.

For more information on the adoption program, contact Save the Manatee Club at 500 N. Maitland Ave., Maitland FL 32751, call 1-800-432-JOIN (5646), or visit their web site at www.savethemanatee.org.