Question: Which classic holiday song motivated the Oklahoma City Zoo to launch a fundraising campaign?
Answer: I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas, released in 1953 by 10-year-old Gayla Peevey, inspired the Oklahoma City Zoo to organize a fundraiser called the Gayla Peevey Hippo Fund. The campaign successfully raised $3,000 to buy Gayla a hippopotamus for Christmas. The hippo, named Matilda, arrived on Christmas Eve. However, since Gayla couldn’t keep a hippo in her house, she generously donated Matilda to the zoo.
