text by Carl Thor and Sally Adams
photo by Mary Wenz
Ospreys fly far and wide over long distances with great accuracy but now they have reached a new high....the US Stock Market. A recent favorite of progressive traders has been Osprey Technology Acquisition Company, ticker symbol (SFTW). It is a SPAC, a special purpose acquisition company. The SPAC, not surprisingly, was formed to acquire and launch an acquired company so that company can be traded on the public markets. That acquired company is Black Sky, proposed symbol BKSY, which is a "real time geospatial intelligence, imagery, and data analytics" company.
We know that ospreys have super geospatial intelligence, so this is a great fit. And in a fine example of self-sacrifice, soon SFTW will go away and BKSY will inherit their combined "nest". Also SFTW/BKSY has neither sales nor earnings, so they will demonstrate as their namesakes do, making a nest out of available materials and brainpower.
One of Downtown Colonial Beach's Directors has offered to buy some SFTW shares and he will on April 1, 2022 give the profits from the transaction to DCB to help support the next real life Osprey Festival in April 2022. Perhaps some of our readers might be willing to do the same thing. "Invest in the Osprey, and the world will be better off." Maybe this should be the new slogan for Downtown Colonial Beach (DCB)!
The best thing about giving to the Osprey Festival is that the gifts are also investments in the town of Colonial Beach and they are tax deductible. DCB's Mission is to revitalize the downtown and commercial core of our historic waterfront community. Gifts to the Osprey Festival also help the birds in so many ways, from nest rehab to education to developing local birding resources. Donations will go to build and repair local osprey platforms encouraging the mating pairs to stop in Colonial Beach, 2022 Festival tours and talks with osprey experts and to promote the Osprey Festival going forward. Money will also go toward downtown improvements proposed by DCB.
Because Colonial Beach is part of the Virginia Bird and Wildlife trail system. It lounges in a comfy spot in the Northern Neck Loop. With plenty of nests for ospreys and humans, Colonial Beach has a reputation for small town charm, with some important amenities including rental cottages and boutique hotels, fine dining and wonderful local eateries, important historical landmarks and amazing outdoor adventures.
As we slowly begin to open up and fulfill our "wanderlove", Colonial Beach is the perfect small town getaway. If you would prefer to make a donation (as opposed to an investment in SFTW/BKSY) you can click the PayPal button on this website or just click this link. We hope to see you in town for next year's festival and online anytime!