Wild About Chocolate fundraiser goes virtual

The Alabama Wildlife’s Center’s 17th annual Wild About Chocolate Gala will be held in a different format this year. Due to COVID concerns, the usual in-person event will instead be an online virtual auction.

AWC executive director Doug Adair said that although their largest and most critical fundraising event will be in a different format, he encourages everybody to go to the website and register and participate in the online auction.  

“This virtual auction is critical for the AWC to be able to care for these injured and orphaned animals and deliver key conservation and educational programming,” Adair said. “We will be adding items as the auction progresses, so come back often during the week. 

Adair said the fundraiser is more important than ever this year with the strain of the pandemic and lingering effects it has had on our mission and has affected our volunteers and financial resources.

The silent auction will go live Monday, Feb. 8 at 8 a.m. and close Friday, Feb. 12 at 7 p.m. and will be online at 32auctions.com/wildaboutchocolate21

Some of the items available include original artwork, sports related items, entertainment packages and two African photo safari packages to Zula Nyala Safari Game preserve in South Africa.

100 percent of the proceeds will go to the AWC to care for Alabama's injured and orphaned native birds in order to permit their return to the wild, and to provide conservation education to people of all ages to heighten awareness and appreciation of Alabama's native wildlife resources.

Find out more about the AWC at alabamawildlifecenter.org.