Owls of Ocala

                                                                   Story by Kathy Hossler
                                                                 Photos by Kaley Sandlin
          Students of St. John Lutheran were in for an adventure this Monday because they were able to see a real owl, upclose, thanks to the Ocala Wildlife Sanctuary. OWLS is a non-profit organization committed to providing humane care to all wild-life birds. Owls are their main rescues. They have been rescuing and caring for birds for over fifteen years. In order to raise awareness, the Ocala Wildlife Sanctuary goes to schools and the community, explaining their mission and goals to people of all ages. “Our goal today is actually to bring awareness to the students, what gifts we are given here on Earth, and how we should respect them and appreciate them. And to always help out whenever possible for others also” says Keith Belisle, President-CEO of Ocala Wildlife Sanctuary.
         The presentation to the students started with Keith Belisle and Kenneth Lane who talked about owls’ daily routine. They explained how owls help people as “pest control” so that the students would know that these animals should not be harmed. A very special owl to the sanctuary, Hobie, was introduced to the students. Belisle explained how Hobie was one of their animal cruelty cases because she was caught in a snare-type trap and someone chopped off her wing with a machete. Belisle believes that they do make a huge difference because they go out and do a number of rescues and release the birds, once healed, back to the wild. Kindergarten student, Isabella Roscoe, says about the owl presentation, "I like that she tried to fly and it was so cool." Another student, Matt Larson from first grade, says his favorite animals are owls and one thing he learned from the presentation was that baby owls jump from branches. All in all, the presentation was a success enabling the students to learn more about wild-life rescues.  Saints students brought in supplies and donations for OWLS, which were greatly appreciated.

Adam Morrison, Savannah Mutchler and Abigail Sellers won cute stuffed owls to remember their meeting with Hobie.  A special thanks to all students who donated supplies to help OWLS of Ocala.

For more photos go to: http://s1010.photobucket.com/albums/af227/Saints1234/OWLS/