Mercer County Executive Brian M. Hughes dropped by the Wildlife Center to personally thank the employees from Toll Brothers, noting that the center relies heavily on community partnerships. Led
About a dozen employees from Toll Brothers Inc., Horsham, Pennsylvania, rolled up their sleeves and spent the day at the Mercer County Wildlife Center on April 10, removing winterization, placing new flooring materials in cages, updating the white-tailed deer fawn enclosure and performing other spring-cleaning chores.
Mercer County Executive Brian M. Hughes dropped by the Wildlife Center to personally thank the employees from Toll Brothers, noting that the center relies heavily on community partnerships. Led by Tracey Fish, volunteer coordinator at Toll Brothers, the employees tackled the jobs with enthusiasm.
The center, which provides injured, ill and displaced native wildlife with medical treatment and a temporary refuge before releasing them back into an appropriate wildlife habitat, accepted and treated 2,300 birds, mammals and reptiles in 2013.
Orientation sessions are held annually in February or March for individuals who would like to volunteer their time to help care for animals brought to the Hopewell Township facility.
The center also needs supplies, volunteer clerical staff and teams of people such as those from Toll Brothers to help maintain the grounds.
The facility includes intensive care and triage units, as well as exterior enclosures that house native wildlife such as raccoons, opossums, foxes, owls and hawks that are further along in their recuperation.
The center is staffed 365 days a year by one full-time licensed wildlife rehabilitator and two full-time assistants, and also relies on the services of seven volunteer veterinarians and more than 100 trained and dedicated volunteers. The center receives more than 13,000 phone calls annually.
”The volunteers who assist our Wildlife Center are indispensable and help us offset the costs of this unique facility,” Mr. Hughes said. “Mercer County is grateful to all the volunteers, especially those from Toll Brothers who donated an entire day of service.”
The Wildlife Center, a facility of the Mercer County Park Commission, is located on Route 29, approximately 3 miles south of Lambertville and 12 miles north of Trenton. For information, call Volunteer Coordinator Jane Rakos-Yates at 609-303-0552, ext. 103.