Friends of Wildlife to celebrate 25 years
A Cape Coral nonprofit that is dedicated to protecting and conserving local wildlife will celebrate a major milestone next week.
Cape Coral Friends of Wildlife is inviting the public to join in the celebration its 25th Anniversary at a special event highlighting the organization’s history, achievements, and ongoing commitment to protecting local wildlife.
The celebration will take place on April 24 at 10 a.m. outdoors at the Cape Coral Museum of History.
Founded in 2001, CCFW has spent 25 years dedicated to preserving and enhancing habitats for protected wildlife species while educating the community about Cape Coral’s unique natural resources. This commemorative event will feature reflections on the organization’s beginnings, presentations from past leaders, and remarks from local dignitaries.
“We are so excited to reach this milestone of 25 years as a strong and growing organization,” said Marlene Paulding, CCFW member and former historian. “We now have over 600 members and have made significant progress in supporting not only burrowing owls, but also other Southwest Florida wildlife, including gopher tortoises, manatees, butterflies, and purple martins. Soon, we will be adding ospreys to the list of species we support.
“Our goal is to ensure that future generations can continue to enjoy all that our city has to offer. We are also proud to partner with the Cape Coral Wildlife Trust to help acquire and preserve land for burrowing owl and gopher tortoise habitat.”
At the open-to-the-public event, guests will have the opportunity to learn more about CCFW’s accomplishments over the years and its vision for the future of wildlife conservation in Cape Coral. Light refreshments will be served and CCFW merchandise will be available for purchase.
“Expect to hear from members who started with the organization,” Paulding said. “We will also share some critical dates and milestones in the history of CCFW. We will have our unique merchandise available for purchase and explain our goals for the future. An exhibit of historical CCFW items will also be on display at the museum.”
Dating back more than two decades, resident Carol Kiefer was instrumental in organizing a wildlife advocate group after conversing with city employee Sue Scott. Paulding said their main focus is on protecting habitat for the burrowing owls, educating the public, promoting starter burrows and mapping current burrows for future observation.
These ideas came to fruition in the spring of 2001.
The first recorded CCFW meeting was at Jaycee Park on April 24, 2001. From then, the next step was securing incorporation and IRS 501c(3) status to allow for fundraising.
Now a city staple, the first Burrowing Owl Festival was held Feb 15, 2003, which allowed CCFW to educate the community of the importance of this threatened species. Next year, CCFW will hold its 25th Annual Burrowing Owl Festival – Wildlife and Environmental Exhibition. “Other important work that was done in the early days was to successfully advocate for city ordinances to protect both the burrowing owl and gopher tortoise,” Paulding said.
The Cape Coral Wildlife Trust was formed in November 2017, dedicated to acquiring and preserving habitat in Cape Coral. The first annual “Ground Owl Day” was held Feb. 2 , 2019, which is the organization’s take on Groundhogs Day.
Paulding said so much has changed throughout the years. CCFW now has hundreds of members and its volunteers recorded more than 13,000 volunteer hours in 2025 alone.
The owl population has grown, just like CCFW, in no small part due to organization’s conservation efforts in partnership with the city of Cape Coral, FWC and the community.
“We are working hard to encourage our youth and young adults to become involved,” Paulding said. “To that end, we held the first Wild About Wildlife event at the Cape Coral Library in 2025 for students, in coordination with a local high school student who took it upon herself to reach out to CCFW. Our young adults will be the future of this organization.”
CCFW is not only an advocate for burrowing owls, but gopher tortoise, purple martins, butterflies, manatee and more. The Tom Allen Butterfly House at Rotary Park hosted more than 700 visitors just in the month of November.
“And yet much remains the same,” Paulding said. “We a welcoming all-volunteer organization made up of wonderful dedicated volunteers who care passionately about the wildlife.”
So, what does CCFW hopes the future holds?
“Our goal is that future generations will be able to enjoy the wildlife in Cape Coral,” Paulding said. “Starter burrows are critical for the burrowing owls to survive here, especially with continued growth and development in the city. Acquisition of land for habitats is so important for gopher tortoise and burrowing owls. We are working with FGCU scientists to pave the way for gopher tortoises to stay locally when displaced by development, instead of being relocated to the Panhandle. We are working on an initiative to significantly reduce the use of harmful rodenticide (rat poison) in the city, encouraging the use of effective, less harmful methods.”
For more information about CCFW, to donate, or to learn about membership and volunteer opportunities, please visit ccfriendsofwildlife.org or call 239-980-2593.
The Cape Coral Museum of History is at 544 Cultural Park Blvd.
To reach CJ HADDAD, please email cjhaddad@breezenewspapers.com