Middle Gate Students Learn About ‘A Place Called Hope’

By Eliza Hallabeck

Middle Gate Elementary School students learned about and were introduced to birds undergoing rehabilitation with A Place Called Hope, in Killingworth, when representatives Christine Cummings-Secki and Alison Rubelmann visited the school on Monday, October 15.

“We’re very excited to be here with all of you,” said Ms Cummings-Seki, who explained that she and Ms Rubelmann are wildlife rehabilitators.

During two presentations, sponsored by the school’s PTA, Ms Cummings-Seki and Ms Rubelmann explained how they help birds of prey that may have been injured or separated from their “families.” For those animals, Ms Cummings-Seki said it is their job to help return them to their environment.

Birds of prey, she said, are sometimes called raptors, and these types of birds can be recognized by curved beaks and sharp talons.

For some birds, Ms Rubelmann explained, it is not possible to return to the wild. The first bird introduced to students during the presentation was an owl called Zen, who will not be able to return to the wild, because Zen was found by a human when he was a baby. The human raised Zen, and Zen has no knowledge of how to hunt or do other things he would need to know in order to survive in the wild.

For more information about A Place Called Hope visit www.aplacecalledhoperaptors.com.