A Commitment of the Heart

In 1984, Samantha "Sam" and Bob Fox made a commitment of the heart. They began receiving birds of prey into their home that had been wounded by cars or guns, or displaced by a construction project - owls, hawks, falcons, and the occasional eagle. Gently, patiently, they restored these birds to health and released those that were able, back into the wild. They became guardians to the remaining birds and discovered what a great resource these birds could be by becoming foster parents to other wounded birds, and by educating children and families about the natural world.

Realizing the enormous value of this work, Sam and Bob birthed Wild At Heart to rescue, rehabilitate and restore Arizona's birds of prey. In 1994, they established Wild At Heart as a 501 © 3 organization, which is located on one acre at their home site in Cave Creek, Ariz.

Today, Wild At Heart rescues and cares for up to 600 owls, hawks, falcons and eagles each year, working in partnership with the leading local, state and national wildlife conversation organizations. Since its inception, Wild At Heart has rehabilitated more than 20,000 hawks and owls. With the support of thousands of volunteers, Sam and Bob Fox have accomplished something no one could have imagined - they've created a habitat of hope for these magnificent birds and have given an invaluable wildlife sanctuary to the citizens of Arizona.

At Wild At Heart, People Learn to Soar

Bob tells the story of one of Wild At Heart's donors who brought his family to visit, including his 17-year-old grandson we'll call Jeff. The family walked around the facility looking at the birds. It didn't seem to be any different than any other visit, until five years later when the donor called to thank Bob, to which Bob replied, "You're welcome. What did I do?"

The donor shared that at the time, his grandson was on a downward path. But after visiting Wild At Heart, he started to apply himself and was now preparing to graduate from college in wildlife biology. He turned his life around, and this was particularly wonderful because Jeff has a form of autism.  

The donor told Bob the only thing they could attribute this to was Jeff's visit to Wild At Heart. It sparked something inside of him. He saw the way of animals - how the owls and the hawks took in nestlings that weren't theirs and raised them. He saw that the family had meaning and purpose. The animals reached into his heart, gave him hope and helped this young man soar.

Because of the organization's deep commitment to Arizona's birds of prey, Wild At Heart has become the foremost national authority on the rescue, rehabilitation, and restoration of birds of prey. Its award-winning programs have been featured on PBS and Animal Planet. For more information on Wild At Heart, please visit http://wildatheartowls.org