Today Is the Day: Help Tumbleweed the Tortoise and Turtle Bay Before 4 PM
When is Caffeinate for a Cause 2026?Today. Thursday, September 24, 2026. Sixteen Honorary Barista teams take over the Dutch Bros stands in Redding, Anderson, and Palo Cedro, and every dollar raised goes to Turtle Bay Exploration Park. Dustyn Kellar and I have the 2 to 4 PM shift in Palo Cedro, and our fundraising window closes when that shift does, at 4 PM today.
So this post is short, and it has one job.
Meet Tumbleweed
Tumbleweed is a Sonoran desert tortoise who lives at Turtle Bay. She is slow, unbothered, and completely unaware that hundreds of people in Shasta County are about to decide whether her home gets a little better this year.
That's the thing about a fundraiser like this. It sounds big: $25,000 goal, 300 acres, 13 years, more than $337,000 raised by Honorary Baristas before us. But it isn't one big gift. It's a lot of people who each said "sure, I can do $20." Tumbleweed doesn't need a hero. She needs a few hundred neighbors.
If you've ever taken a kid to Turtle Bay, walked the Sundial Bridge on a Sunday, or gone to a field trip there yourself, you're already one of those neighbors. This is just the part where it counts.
The whole thing takes about as long as ordering a coffee, and I'd rather you do it now than tell yourself you'll come back to it.
Any amount counts. The price of two Dutch Bros drinks is a wonderful gift. When it asks which Honorary Barista team you support, enter Katie Luther & Dustyn Kellar so it lands on our team's total.
Done? Thank you. Here's your reward.
The house we dreamed up for Tumbleweed
Dustyn is an interior stylist, and I sell homes on dirt roads, so when Turtle Bay introduced us to a desert tortoise, we did the only reasonable thing. We found her a house.
A desert tortoise wants sun, dry air, and somewhere cool to retreat to. That gave us the whole brief: a Tuscan-style home with stucco walls, a tile roof, big windows, and succulents for landscaping so the desert comes right up to the patio.
Inside, the living room opens completely to the outside, so the dry breeze comes through on cool mornings and evenings. Warm during the day, refreshing at night. Wood beams, a plaster fireplace, and a leather chair she is never going to climb into but will appreciate the look of.
And the bedroom, with arched doors to the courtyard and enough linen to sink into. We're pretty sure she'd sleep for a month in there. Tortoises are good at that.
(These are AI images made for fun. The real Tumbleweed is well cared for at Turtle Bay, and this fundraiser is part of how that stays true.)
Your turn: would Tumbleweed pick this desert house, or the moody cabin we found for Blossom the skunk? Tell me in the comments. Every comment nudges more people to see this post, which nudges more people to give.
Three ways to help before 4 PM today
1. Give online. Right here, any amount, team name Katie Luther & Dustyn Kellar. This is the one that moves the needle.
2. Send this to one person. Not your whole list. One friend who loves Turtle Bay. A personal "thought of you" text does more than a hundred shares into the void.
3. Come get a coffee from us. Palo Cedro Dutch Bros, 9477 Deschutes Road, today from 2 to 4 PM. $1 from every drink, plus tips, goes to Turtle Bay, and you may get to meet one of the animals in person.
Questions people ask
Can I donate if I can't make it to Dutch Bros?
Yes. Turtle Bay takes online donations for Caffeinate for a Cause. Note the Honorary Barista team you're supporting so the gift is credited to them.
Is my donation tax deductible?
Turtle Bay Exploration Park is a nonprofit, and you'll receive a receipt from them when you give online. Check with your tax professional about your own situation.
Where does the money go?
To Turtle Bay Exploration Park in Redding: the animals, the exhibitions, and the education programs that local kids grow up with.
Thank you for showing up. I'll post our team total after it is all added up next week.
All the best,Katie Luther, REALTOR®Good Earth Realty | Redding, Palo Cedro, and Shasta County CA DRE# 01821668 | (530) 209-1649
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