Perrie Lee Prouty

WETA Hometown Hero September 2006. Perrie Lee Prouty is a volunteer for Second Chance Wildlife Center and an active member in wildlife legislative efforts.

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Perrie Lee Prouty, a volunteer for Second Chance Wildlife Center and an active member in wildlife legislative efforts, is the WETA Hometown Hero for September 2006.

WETA selected Prouty for her dedicated efforts over the past ten years in protecting wildlife and the environment and her active work with government agencies in trying to create legal means to protect and save animals as well.

Prouty began her wildlife volunteering in the early 1990s, after retiring from a career of twenty-eight years on Capitol Hill. Pursuing her lifelong interest in the outdoors and animals, she joined the volunteer staff of a wildlife center in Prince George’s County, Maryland.

Her experience there fostered a desire to be a wildlife rehabilitator, and Prouty trained to became one. She quickly began using her rehabilitating services with wildlife organizations throughout the region and it was her encounters with animals hit by cars that led Prouty to pursue involvement with legislation pertaining to animal.

“This woman is a truly rare individual who is very compassionate and caring about wildlife but tempers her compassion with a firm grip on reality,” said Christine Montuori, executive director of Second Chance Wildlife Center. “I know of no one who devotes more time and energy to protecting wildlife and the environment while, at the same time, keeping the needs of the public in mind.”

Located in Gaithersburg, Maryland, the Second Chance Wildlife Center (SCWC) facilitates the preservation of local wildlife through education, rehabilitation and referrals. The organization is a federally licensed wildlife rehabilitation facility, which authorizes them to rehabilitate migratory birds, and much of Prouty’s efforts have been with waterfowl.

SCWC is housed in an historic farmhouse where Prouty and the rest of the staff welcome over 10,000 visitors annually, as concerned citizens bring in thousands of native wildlife to SCWC for medical treatment, attentive care and release. SCWC also works to educate the public on the benefits that wild animals bring to communities and to help people avoid problems with wild animals in their neighborhoods. Meeting with numerous children’s group, the staff frequently takes extra time to talk to young visitors and to introduce them to select wild patients.

Prouty’s work extends beyond her committed efforts at SCWC. She volunteers regularly at another wildlife rehabilitation center, Noah’s Ark in Annapolis, and rescues waterfowl for rehabilitation in various counties throughout Maryland. She serves actively on the Legislative Committee of the Maryland Wildlife Rehabilitators Association, to monitor Maryland legislature pertaining to bills of interest to wildlife rehabilitators.

Her work with government agencies includes membership on two subcommittees of the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (COG) Animal Services Committee, the Wildlife Subcommittee and the Wildlife-Vehicle Avoidance Working Group, where she assists in its work on white papers pertaining to the impact of wildlife calls on shelters, police, government health agencies, wildlife rehabilitators and nuisance control cooperators.

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