THE MISSION OF THE PEACE RIVER WILDLIFE CENTER IS TO CONTRIBUTE TO THE SURVIVAL OF NATIVE FLORIDA WILDLIFE THROUGH RESCUE, REHABILITATION, AND EDUCATION.
Peace River Wildlife Center’s hospital and education center continue to recover from Hurricanes Helene and Milton with help from our community, local media, supporters, and networking organizations who believe in our mission of rescue, rehabilitate, and educate and who have a deep love for wildlife. We are heartened by the progress we have made towards being able to return to our facilities. We still have a way to go but are hopeful because of the outpouring of support.
HOW CAN YOU HELP?
Many of you have asked how you can assist us during this difficult time. Currently, the best way to support our recovery is through financial donations. Please visit prwildlife.org if you would like to contribute.
Share our website and our posts on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube with friends, family, and businesses. While financial donations are most critical, we could also use gift cards from Publix, Walmart, and Amazon. These can be mailed to 3400 Ponce de Leon Parkway, Punta Gorda, FL 33950; we are still receiving mail.
DEPOT, WHO HAS BEEN A TREMENDOUS
RESOURCE AND HELP TO PRWC THROUGH BOTH OF THESE STORMS!
Shop from our Wishlist on Amazon. We lost nearly everything in the storms, including food for our wildlife, medical supplies, equipment, office furniture, and gift shop fixtures. Go to https://www.amazon.com/hz/ wishlist/ to help us restock and restore.
At this time, we cannot accept aluminum cans. Please watch for updates on the future of our recycling program. Due to hazardous conditions at both sites, we cannot take on new volunteers now. We will provide updates when we can. Please do not visit either location, as both are currently closed to the public. We appreciate your understanding and patience.
Our commitment to wildlife care is unwavering. We will rise above these challenges. We are incredibly grateful for our community and the organizations that have supported us. We will rise higher!
WILDLIFE HOSPITAL RECOVERY
Our hospital location took a big hit from Hurricane Helene, with Milton delivering the knockout punch shortly thereafter. Determined as always, and with some help from local construction teams, we are well on our way to getting back to our mission of caring for injured wildlife. We anticipate that our wildlife hospital will be opening soon. Watch for posts on our social media sites in the days ahead form more information.
RESIDENT WILDLIFE UPDATE
Many of our education center’s wildlife residents are currently “vacationing” at other Florida wildlife facilities while we continue our recovery process to bring them home. It gives us great comfort to know that they are being well cared for by the wildlife care teams at Flamingo Gardens, Busch Wildlife Sanctuary, Calusa Nature Center, and Florida Keys Wild Bird Rehabilitation Center.
The Wildlife Center of Southwest Florida in Venice and Blue Pearl Vet office (C.R.O.W. drop site) in Sanibel have also done an amazing job of receiving injured wildlife emergencies from Charlotte County.
These valuable partnerships have been critical to the care of our Florida wildlife during our restoration.
EXCITING NEWS: OUR 2025 SPECIAL COLLECTOR’S EDITION PRWC CALENDARS ARE COMING SOON!
These one-of-a-kind collectible calendars feature stunning photos by renowned nature photographer Joel Sartore, known for his work with the National Geographic Photo Ark. They also showcase ambassador photos and winners from our photo contest.
Arriving just in time for the holiday season, these calendars make the perfect yearlong gift of wildlife for your family and friends. They will be available for just $9.95 (plus shipping, if applicable).
All proceeds will go to the care of native Florida wildlife. Be sure to follow our social media channels for updates on when they will be available for purchase!
EVERY DAY IS THANKSGIVING AT PRWC
We can’t begin to find enough words to thank everyone who has contributed to Peace River Wildlife Center throughout these last few weeks. The outpouring of support has been inspiring and has allowed us to progress much further in our recovery efforts than we could have imagined. We have hope for the days ahead. Whether you donated $5 or $5,000, every dollar is making a difference.
A special thanks to the following businesses and organizations not already mentioned above:
- 4 Seasons Air Conditioning, Inc.
- WastetoCharity.org
- Detroit Lions Fan Club Mutt
- Nation-Tractor Supply
- UnWINed Wine & Beer Bar
- Coastal Isles Wine Bar
- Punta Gorda Rotary & Education Foundation
- Catastrophe Care Group Coastal Wildlife Club, Inc.
- Ann Street Storage
- NextEra Energy Foundation
- Kyle’s Insurance Company
- ABC 7 WINK News
Volunteer Army
We also want to give a very deep and heartfelt thanks to the family members of our PRWC staff. You have shown up, picked up, nailed up, been banged up, and more importantly, held us all up during this incredibly difficult time. We couldn’t have gotten through this without you, and we are so grateful for you all.
