From Hoots to Heartstrings: The Owls That Captivated Salem

by Elanah Sherman, Chair, Education and Outreach Committee
Featured image “Profile of the ‘rare and declining’ Barn Owl” by Victoria Eisenhauer

About 30 people, all sedately presenting as adults, entered the function room at the Salem Grange on October 24 for “Owls Among Us,” a program led by Gwen Rice, Co-Founder and Director of home-based Freedom First Wildlife Rehab in Waterford. Established in 2017, Freedom First is the only owl-exclusive rehab group in Connecticut, taking in, caring for, and (when medically advisable) releasing the owls back into the wild. Those rescued owls who can no longer live safely in their native habitats are kept and nurtured in the home’s specially designed environments. Some of these, after gentle preparation, become Owl Ambassadors, accompanying Gwen during her presentations, and transforming adults into awestruck children unencumbered by inhibition or self-consciousness.

Rapt, serious, and relatively silent (except for questions) during the more expository part of the presentation, the audience changed as the Owl Ambassadors, one by one, were introduced.

“Oh! Ahh! Wow! Aww!”

A loud and cascading “Yes” when Gwen held up a screech owl and asked, rhetorically, “Isn’t she adorable?”

So it was at this program organized by Avalonia’s Salem Chapter: A group of adults during a contentious political season allowing joy, wonder, and concern to proliferate on a Saturday afternoon.

Like all of Connecticut’s private nonprofit wildlife rehabilitation groups, Freedom First receives no public funding for the emotionally taxing, physically demanding, and ceaseless volunteer work they do. Even the training for certification by the state’s Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) is arduous and lengthy, including an apprenticeship and written examination. Why do rehabbers do it? And, in this case, why owls?

Gwen was raised in Tennessee, where she developed a love and respect for wildlife. She says she was attracted to owls because “they are solitary and mysterious creatures that are careful observers. Their beauty and intelligence spark interest and passion in many wildlife lovers, myself included…Regardless of the hard work it entails, I am blessed to be able to care for them. It never gets old and I learn from every owl who comes into care.”

Gwen emailed those words to me at 11:00 PM one night as she waited for a new owl to arrive.