The Hawaii Wildlife Center aims to protect, conserve and aid in the recovery of the state’s native winged wildlife, hoping to reverse the trend of extinction prevalent on the islands.
Development Coordinator Rae Okawa, a native of Oahu, joined the center ten years ago and has since taken on the responsibility of fund development, communication and outreach.
“While I was getting my master's degree (at the University of Pennsylvania), I took a course on nonprofit fundraising, and part of the coursework was to craft a fundraising plan for an organization of our choosing,” Okawa told Big Island Times. “Even then, I still wanted to work in conservation of Hawaiian birds, so instead of choosing a local Philadelphia nonprofit like my classmates, I researched who was doing work specifically with native bird species in Hawaii and I discovered the Hawaii Wildlife Center.”
The Hawaii Wildlife Center provides expertise for veterinary care and rehabilitation to native winged wildlife, including more than 70 different species and subspecies of native birds and the state’s only native land mammal, the Hawaiian hoary bat.
“The Hawaii Wildlife Center aims to reverse the extinction trend in our islands and counteract the further loss of native wildlife in the Pacific by providing a resource that helps humans and native species coexist,” Okawa said.
Okawa said new patients arrive from throughout the state weekly, with patient numbers continuing to climb from 23 patients in 2012 to the 1,000-patient milestone in 2020. One patient, a Hawaiian short-eared owl from Waikoloa, had been hit by a car and suffered a broken wing.
“We have an awesome team of volunteer drivers in our 'Wheels for Wildlife' program,” Okawa said. “One of our 'Wheels for Wildlife' volunteers picked up the injured pueo from the rescuer, and less than 24 hours later, the patient was on its way to our veterinary partners for specialized surgery.”
According to its website, the Hawaii Wildlife Center has a vast reach from all of Hawaii to Midway and Kure Atoll. The main facility is located in Kapaau with branches on Oahu and Lanai.
Operating as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, all funds to the center come from its donors, grantors and partners, with no operational funding from government sources.
Anyone interested in getting involved may volunteer for one of the many opportunities available, Okawa said. These include on-site volunteering and rescue-and-transport volunteering in the center’s “Wheels for Wildlife” program.