The Betty White Challenge raised $10,827 on Jan. 17 for the Northern Lights Wildlife Society (NLWS), a very unexpected and welcomed financial support, according to staff.
“What an incredible way to help beyond your lifetime,” Angelika Langen, owner of NLWS, said.
“The recent Betty White Challenge has been an amazing example of legacy giving. Though most of us don’t have that kind of popularity we still can have a meaningful impact on the cause we support.”
“Legacy giving happens in many ways and provides valuable tax incentives that ensure your loved ones are not loosing out. You can leave as much or as little as you want as there is no gift too small to make an impact. It only takes a few minutes to leave a gift to your charity but it creates a legacy that lives on forever,” Langen said.
Donations flowed into the society’s shelter, and at animal shelters everywhere, to commemorate what would have been the 100th birthday of Hollywood actress and animal rights activist Betty White. She died just before reaching the century mark.
READ MORE: Rehabilitated B.C. bears set to return to wild through Northern Lights Wildlife Society
The mission of the NLWS is three fold:
- To provide young injured and/or orphaned wildlife with a safe and healthy environment to mature into adulthood, upon which they are released back to the wild.
- To educate the public about wildlife needs and what threatens them and how they can take steps to avoid conflict and assist in peaceful coexistence
- For on-going research to be compiled and shared with the public, educational facilities/students, government policy makers and professionals
NLWS was founded in 1990 by Langen and her family on property outside of Smithers.
NLWS provides injured and/or orphaned wildlife with a temporary safe haven before releasing them back to their natural habitat. The shelter accepts animals province wide and works in close conjunction with other shelters. They specialize in carnivores (mainly bears) and ungulates (moose and deer) but accept all mammals and birds.
Birds typically are forwarded to other shelters that specialize in their care. The society is actively involved in a number of research projects and is also active in public education about peaceful co-existence with wildlife.
In 2007, NLWS started the first official grizzly rehab program in the world in cooperation with the BC government. A total of 36 grizzly cubs have been admitted so far and are being monitored via GPS collars after their release.
More than 630 black bears have come through the facility and so far 89.6 per cent of those have been released back into the wild.
READ MORE: Wild Bear Rescue nominated for five Leo Awards
deb.meissner@interior-news.com
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