Nature People Deserve Our Support

The story of Richard Wohlgemuth and Wildlife Wishing Well

Tucked away in a quiet neighborhood on Ithaca's west hill is a small, unassuming ranch house. This is where Richard Wohlgemuth lives and runs his certified wildlife rehab center, Wildlife Wishing Well. This is an incredibly modest operation – but after talking to Richard we learned that he has been caring for and rehabilitating injured or sick wildlife since he was a little boy.

Running a wildlife sanctuary alone is impossible – but the day to day operations are still up to him. Fortunately he has volunteers who show up every day to help bottle feed the young orphaned babies, or to build a new shed in the back yard for acclimation. Other volunteers form a network of soft release points around the area for raccoons.

Richard calls them "residents" and "nature people", selflessly offering respect and care with no strings attached.

Richard also relies completely on his own income as a retired vet to support this effort – along with small dollar donations that are collected by volunteers.

I had the honor of getting to know Richard back in 2012 when I was recording interviews for my radio show on environmental issues in the region. I learned so much about these nature people – so much I want to share.

The question that comes up is this... how can we give back to those nature people who live here... often in the shadows, and under constant threat of cars, poison, traps... How can we better educate ourselves and each other about the amazing and complex social lives of these creatures and how can we get along with them?

Please join me in supporting Richard and his ongoing efforts at Wildlife Wishing Well. Your contribution will buy meals, litter, cleaning supplies, and medicine for raccoons, foxes, and skunks who deserve to be cared for.

Thank you so much,
Ryan Clover

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Your contribution today will have an immediate and tangible impact – not to mention it will make Richard very happy.