Are You an Animal Fan?

Recently Aces Wildlife Rescue held an Ales and Tales Sunset Fundraiser at the Watermark Hotel’s Skyview restaurant. I was unable to attend so I asked a few people I know that were going to help capture the moment.

The event was well attended and raised a little over 20k Belize dollars to help Aces Wildlife Rescue team do their invaluable work.

And now for the party goer’s reports.

Aces Volunteer

It was a tropical island, picture perfect sunset fundraiser at The rooftop restaurant benefitting Aces Wildlife Rescue. A sold out event brought together likeminded supporters to celebrate the hard work and successes of two highly capable owners, Chris and Christina along with their volunteers. Spirits were high and exceptional prizes donated helped to insure our island wildlife will thrive. Kudos on a stellar event!

Sanford’s Party Intel

So last night was the very first event in the new function hall. They literally finished it the day before. The kitchen is brand new and sparkling clean. You can watch the kitchen staff hard at work through a large window near the bar.

The staff looked very professional…Bar, kitchen, Servers.

At one point, I was telling Miss Ingrid of Saga Humane Society (Saga) and Chris Summers of Aces about a turtle at SPAH that got hit by a boat that day and they immediately went into work mode and asked for an update on how it was doing. A few minutes later, I encountered Zair Cadena a vet tech at San Pedro Animal Hospital (SPAH) who was able to confirm that the turtle was doing well. It was heartwarming to see members of Saga Humane Society and San Pedro Animal Hospital attend in support.

Rita K-L

ACES Wildlife Rescue recently had a beautiful dinner fundraiser, Ales and Tails, at the Sky View Restaurant to help support their rescue mission. The evening started off with cocktails and appetizers with 360 degree views of the ocean and surrounding area of this beautiful island that is home to us and the wildlife that Chris and the ACES team dearly love.

There was a delicious dinner, raffles and silent auctions throughout the evening. Chris kept us entertained with stories of jumping on crocodiles’ backs, swimming in the water with an anteater that had somehow gotten on a catamaran, then jumped in the water as the team tried to capture it, and rescuing birds, rehabilitating then releasing animals, and many other stories.

The annual operating budget for ACES is over $200,000 for the ACES team to rescue, rehabilitate, release, care for, feed, build & upkeep of enclosures, etc., the wildlife that they are called upon to help. Not to mention the upkeep of transportation, costs of gas, examinations and medical supplies!

Since the ACES team has now expanded to taking on most any wildlife that they’re called to respond to, the costs continue to rise, especially with the varieties of wildlife they come across.

ACES started out just to help crocodiles on Ambergris Caye that need rescuing, or have injuries, or need to be relocated to any area more conducive to a crocodile’s way of life.

As ACES became more well known on the island they started getting calls to take care of birds, raccoons, boas, and other wildlife that people thought ACES could help. Of course, being professionals and lovers of wildlife, they venture out to any call they receive, no matter the time of day or the weather.

Without the help of donors, this team would not be able to continue the work they do on this island. Their work is not only about “saving” wildlife, It’s also about educating those living on or visiting Ambergris. Everyone needs to know what to do, and who to call when something happens.

Think of the crocodile that crawls under a house to get some kind of food, but gets “stuck”. What are you going to do? Call ACES! Chris and his team will remove the crocodile from under the house, then tell the homeowner how to prevent it from happening again. Sometimes not only telling them how to do it, but doing it for them, too.

Bottom line, ACES is badly needed on Ambergris Caye, and donations are how they exist. Without you, the donors, they wouldn’t be able to fill the niche on the island, saving our wildlife, environment and surroundings on a daily basis.

tacogirl’s 2 cents

5 reasons to Support Aces Wildlife Rescue and 4 Easy Ways You Can

Although I did not attend the event myself, I definitely believe in this cause and have 5 great reasons why my animal lover readers should support them.

• Community Outreach – Aces teaches the next generation to help protect vulnerable species and their habitats in Belize.
• Rehabilitation – Aces provides thoughtful and experienced short and long term care for injured animals while they heal.
• Research – Aces is active in hands-on research into our fragile island ecosystem and endangered species.
• Rescue – Aces is on call 24 h a day for emergency rescue response regarding sick, injured, orphaned or illegally trafficked animals.
• Sanctuary – Aces provides a safe haven for animals who are unable to return to the wild.
• Bonus Reason – Aces helped protect and care for Belize’s National Bird the Toucan. In a rare occurrence a toucan made it’s way to the island and suffered a freak accident of flying beak first into a window. The bird sustained injuries which rendered him unable to fly for a few weeks. Aces Wildlife Rescue helped the bird transition from feeling poorly back to being ready to soar free again. He is one of their rarest rescues to date and the rescue team was thankful they were able to help.

Ambergris Caye and Belize is grateful and lucky to have such a dedicated organization looking out for the animals who can’t always protect themselves or need healing help. We are also grateful for all the animal lovers that have visited here and are willing to help Aces Wildlife Rescue.

1, You can show your support by following, liking and sharing their great pictures on Aces Socials – Aces Facebook – Aces Wildlife Rescue and Aces Instagram – aces.wildlife.rescue

2 Adopt an Animal – Your choice of a bird, croc, reptile or rescue.

3. Make an In Kind Donation or on amazon wish list through Aces website.

4. Take a unique vacation as a Wildlife Rehabilitation Volunteer in Belize.