After learning of the dire need for emergency funding for Clearwater Marine Aquarium, Protect Wild Dolphins Alliance, Inc.'s President and Programs Manager, Steve McCulloch, immediately arranged to send $25,000.00 to help Clearwater Marine Aquarium protect the marine wildlife impacted by Hurricane Helena. This included Clearwater Marine Aquarium's Florida manatees Yeti and Zamboni, their resident dolphins and a dozen or more injured sea turtles. Funding was generated from sales of the 'Protect Marine Wildlife’ specialty license plate.
'Protect Marine Wildlife' specialty license plate helps Clearwater Marine Aquarium after ‘catastrophic’ damage from Hurricane Helene.
Through sales of the ‘Protect Marine Wildlife’ specialty license plate, the PWDA provides funding to support stranding response of injured marine wildlife and enhance research programs involving the conservation of wild dolphin populations statewide.
Most recently, grants were provided to The Coastal Stewards, the nonprofit that manages the Gumbo Limbo Nature Center in Boca Raton, for diagnostic tools to aid in the assessment and rehabilitation of sick and injured marine wildlife, and to the University of Florida’s Aquatic Animal Health Program, for veterinary support of the NOAA Fisheries Marine Mammal Health and Stranding Response Network.
PWDA hopes that more organizations will step up to the plate and help Clearwater Marine Aquarium (“CMA”) in their hour of need.
Protect Marine Wildlife specialty license plates can be purchased at your local tax collectors office or you can order on-line.