By Amanda Lollar
As you may recall from our 2015 year-end annual report, we only needed $13,000 to pay off the large construction loan we secured in 2013 in order to build our new facility. Well, we have fantastic news! Your support, along with a tremendous donation of $50,000 and the sale of our former property, enabled us to pay the entire loan in December and Bat World is now 100% debt free! Bat World Sanctuary truly is a “Forever Place for Bats in Need”, and thousands of bats like little Victoria (pictured below) will be saved, for decades to come, because of you. What a magical way to begin the New Year.
Little Victoria is our first rescue of 2016. She was one of several evening bats using the hollow of a dead tree as a roost. Unfortunately the tree was about to fall into the street so the homeowners had to remove it. In cutting a section they discovered a small colony of evening bats roosting in a knothole. The startled bats flew off, but as the homeowners moved that section of the tree out of the way they discovered little Victoria hiding in another crevice, bleeding where the saw blade had nicked her tiny body. Thankfully, the concerned homeowners immediately called us for help. Victoria has a lacerated ear, a broken wrist, finger fractures on one wing, and a forearm fracture on the other wing. This photo was taken after she arrived at our rescue center, Bat World MidCities on Jan 13th (she had received pain medication and antibiotics before this picture was taken). Victoria is doing much better today but unfortunately she is not releasable so she’ll live out her life at Bat World with others of her kind.
Your support enabled Victoria to be rescued and supported for the remainder of her life with every conceivable bat creature comfort, in a simulated natural environment with others of her own kind. Thank you to every one of you; no matter the size of the donation, it took all of you, from those who donated $5 to the anonymous donor who gave the astounding $50,000 donation. Every penny that came in made Bat World Sanctuary a forever place for bats in need so innocent beings like Victoria have a sanctuary to live out their lives with all the freedom their healed injuries allow. On behalf of Victoria and all the bats yet to be saved in the years ahead, thank you from the bottom of our hearts. ♥