Dear friends of the California Raptor Center,

2019 has been another amazing year here at the Center!
 
Our mission is to preserve and protect all raptor species through rehabilitation, education, and science. Bret Stedman, our long-time Operations Manager, received his 30 year service pin this year; all total he has volunteered or work at the CRC for 37 years! His expertise in the biology and management of raptors in captivity is vast–he has trained hundreds, if not thousands of eager students over the years who have gone on to become wildlife biologists, STEM teachers, veterinarians and epidemiologists. I too was (and will always be) one of his students–as a resident at UC Davis in the 1990s Bret taught me to see not just the individual bird I was treating, but also how the one bird relates to the free-ranging species, and the roles they play in the environment.
We are also very committed to educating the public about wild raptors as individuals, and as part of the intertwining environmental web of life. As always, we hosted spring and fall Open House events and our now annual Biodiversity Day for the public, and had 2400 attendees for the 3 events! Very special thanks to Raptors are the Solution (R.A.T.S.) and the Burrowing Owl Preservation Society for coming to our events and speaking with the public about their important programs. Thanks also to Super Owl Brewing Company for donating adult refreshments in the afternoon of our events!
Jo Cowen, Lis Fleming and Julie Cotton are our education “dream team” leaders, providing on-site presentations for more than 3600 attendees for our on- and off-site presentation. Jo Cowen received the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine's 2018 Distinguished Service Award for her over 26 years of service at the CRC! Our educational programs are always in great demand thanks to these devoted volunteers.
The CRC welcomed ours first summer intern, Katrina Reethof-Bower. Among her many projects, Katrina overhauled and updated the CRC's website, built a digital timeline showing the history of the CRC, increased public engagement by writing and publishing stories on social media and reformatted the CRC's adopt-a-bird stories. 
Two human imprinted turkey vultures joined the CRC's permanent collection in 2019 and are in training to become educational ambassador. They are in flight training on a creance line in front of an audience, which is a new development for the CRC's education programs. They have a ton of personality and we are excited to introduce them to you at our public events. Read their story here .
The CRC’s resident white-tailed kites Eliza and Elana, as well as a juvenile spotted owl, were featured this year on Instagram and online by internationally-acclaimed photographer Joel Sartore’s National Geographic Photo Ark , a groundbreaking effort to document species before they disappear.
Finally as the year ends, we are unveiling our new logo! Designed by Billy Thein (one of very own volunteers) and his mother, our new logo captures a Swainson’s hawk flying over the State of California. Look for the new logo on new swag very soon!
Happy Holidays to everyone and thank you again for supporting the California Raptor Center!

For information on our finances from the 2018-2019 fiscal year, check out our annual report online .

Happy Holidays to everyone and thank you again for supporting the California Raptor Center!
Michelle Hawkins, VMD DABVP (Avian Practice)
Director
Need a great holiday gift idea?

Adopt-A-Bird is a great way to support the California Raptor Center and give a meaningful gift to the raptor enthusiast in your life.

Your gift provides operational support to the California Raptor Center, allowing staff to provide care and rehabilitation to injured or orphaned raptors. Learn more on our Adopt-A-Bird page .