Long-standing FAWNA member Meredith Ryan recognised with prestigious Wildlife Rehabilitator Award

AFTER 34 years of dedicated service, Meredith Ryan has been recognised for her incredible work with FAWNA.

Meredith received the NSW Wildlife Council’s “Wildlife Rehabilitator Award”, during the council’s 20th anniversary event on Friday 28 November.

NSW Minister for Climate Change, Energy, Heritage and the Environment Penny Sharpe, presented the inaugural award to Meredith, for her outstanding contribution to the wildlife rescue and rehabilitation sector.

In turn, Meredith accepted the honour on behalf of the magnificent wildlife rehabilitation volunteers throughout NSW who do such important work nurturing and ensuring good wildlife welfare outcomes.

“How proud I am that the work of the local licensed volunteer wildlife rescue group working in Port Macquarie-Hastings, Mid Coast and Kempsey, has been recognised,” Meredith told News Of The Area.

She particularly thanked the “significant others” who support carers in their voluntary work.

An active and dedicated member of FAWNA since 1991, Meredith has held several leadership roles in the charitable organisation, including Secretary, Treasurer, Media Officer, Membership Secretary, and for the last several years, President.

Meredith has also been the Coordinator for Macropods, flying-foxes, bats, reptiles, and has trained and mentored several generations of new FAWNA volunteers whilst also being an integral member of the NSW Wildlife Council.

Over the years, Meredith has been instrumental in spearheading some of the region’s most pivotal programs and projects.

She was key in developing post-bushfire wildlife search and rescue protocols for the National Parks and Wildlife Service and orchestrated the launch of the Food4Wildlife and Nest Box Appeal initiatives.

Following the “Black Summer” fires, these relief initiatives saw over 30 food collection stations established across the 18,000km2 regions of the MidCoast, Port Macquarie-Hastings, and Kempsey LGAs.

These provided macropod pellets, bird seed, and other feed for distribution by residents and volunteers throughout fire-affected areas.

At the same time, nest boxes were built and installed to provide emergency shelter for hollow-dependent species whose habitats had been destroyed, ensuring thousands of birds and animals were able to survive and thrive.

Meredith holds a deep conviction that every life matters and that every action helps protect Australia’s unique native species and ecosystems.

Her legacy lives on in every animal she has released back into the wild, in every wildlife rescuer and rehabilitator she has mentored, in every grant-winning submission she has crafted, in every initiative she has launched, and in every conversation she has had with politicians and the media.

Wildlife organisations such as FAWNA receive no government funding but are required to comply with strict licensing regulations to rescue, care and rehabilitate wildlife, including identified threatened and endangered species.

By Rikki WALLER