An “extraordinary” $420,000 has been donated to the Bonorong Wildlife Sanctuary in just four weeks as their Project RECAP fundraising drive for a new animal hospital wraps up.
Over 1,220 supporters chipped in to reach a donation total of $420,350, which will now be matched dollar for dollar, bringing the total to over $840,000, courtesy of the Elsie Cameron Foundation.
Bonorong Director Greg Irons has thanked all of the supporters for their role in saving animal lives and says they now “have to and will” start construction of the new hospital, having already signed the building contracts.
“Tremendous, just astounding to get to $405,000 by this point,” Irons said shortly before the fundraiser finished.
“Look, to be honest, we never thought we would raise these sort of funds, not in little Tassie for such a cause.”
“The belief that you all have in what we’re trying to achieve and understanding how important this is has been just so heartwarming, really quite moving to be honest.”
“Regardless of where we land, you’ve all been phenomenal and amazing. Thank you very, very much.”
Bonorong is Tasmania’s first and only fully dedicated 24/7 wildlife hospital and helps over 15,000 animals annually, a number expected to increase by around 500 to 1,000 year on year.
Since 2010, the sanctuary has been self-funded, with an annual expenditure exceeding $1.6 million per year.
The funds will be used to build a state-of-the-art animal hospital with sterile surgery facilities, an intensive care unit, a recovery room, a quarantine section and a critical care and rescue coordination area.
The new hospital will allow for longer operating hours, enabling wildlife with painful injuries to be treated more promptly.
