Defenders of Wildlife

2000 Contributors

Dear New Defender of Wildlife,

Thank you for joining Defenders of Wildlife.

Somewhere right now, in the wild lands of Yellowstone of the Snake River area of Idaho, there's a wolf pup that plays in a slightly safer world, thanks to you.

As promised I have enclosed your personal Wolf Adoption Certificate. I hope you'll display it with pride -- after all, your wise and generous decision to participate in Defenders of Wildlife's Wolf Adoption program is ensuring the survival of all of these magnificent animals.

And wolves do need your help to survive.

Oh, not to find food, or a safe place to dig a den -- but they need your protection just the same.

You see, anti-conservation forces in Congress are using lies and half-truths to further their agenda. They're growing in power and influence in communities across the U.S. If we don't stop their wolf-hating agenda, they will gladly destroy wildlife protection in America as we know it.

That's why I invite you to extend your commitment and become the newest member of our Wildlife Guardians.

The Wildlife Guardians is a select society of caring people like you who commit to making a small contribution to Defenders of Wildlife each month.

For as little as $10 a month, you can fight with us to protect the wolves and other endangered wildlife. The unknown young wolf you adopted when you joined is frisking next to its den today -- I hope you'll still help that wolf as it grows throughout the year.

Your monthly pledge can see "your" wolf through its fuzzy, wiggly puppy stage, where every pack member coddles and cossets the babies . . .

. . . and a few months later, as the pups begin to get leggy and shaggy, you'll still be supporting them. When the time comes for them to join their very first hunting party, they'll be running through a better-protected habitat because you continued to care.

And as they learn, and move up in the ranks, you will be the unseen force that keeps away the zealots and fanatics who believe that the only good wolf is a dead wolf.

As a member of Defenders of Wildlife, you adopted a wolf -- and as a Wildlife Guardian, you'll know that you are helping that wolf throughout its life, as it grows, learns, becomes wise to the ways of the wilderness.

In fact, I encourage you to believe that the wolf you protect will one day come to be what you are -- a leader. The alpha, or lead, wolf guides the pack wisely, steering away from danger and taking advantages of fleeting opportunities . . .

When you become a Wildlife Guardian, you will help us turn trouble away from the wolves we both love. Together you and I will take advantage of opportunities when they present themselves.

Just $10 a month or 33 cents a day can really have an impact on our effectiveness.

Combined with the pledges of our other Wildlife Guardians, your monthly gift lets us act quickly whenever and wherever anti-wildlife extremists pose new threats.

And every penny counts in our day to day efforts to defend the rights of wildlife.

For example . . .

Part of your monthly pledge may go to our famous Wolf Compensation Program. If a reintroduced wolf kills any kind of livestock, Defenders of Wildlife has a special fund that will pay the farmer or rancher the full fair market value for that animal.

That's an unstoppable weapon in our continual struggle to convince regional residents that wolf reintroductions will not affect them negatively.

Perhaps your monthly pledge will go to our legislative efforts. Defenders of Wildlife speaks on Capitol Hill for wolves, dolphins, wild birds, manatees, and other endangered species.

Without the help of our Wildlife Guardians, we couldn't keep Congress informed of the true value -- economic as well as ecological, moral, and aesthetic -- of a strong Endangered Species Act.

And maybe your monthly pledge will be used to help bring law-breakers to justice. We're not afraid to fight legal battles to protect wild birds, dolphins, and other species at risk.

As a Wildlife Guardian, you will receive first-hand reports on how your contributions are making a difference for wildlife.

And because we can depend on the steady money from the Wildlife Guardians, we can concentrate on the job at hand: protecting wildlife and habitat for today and for generations to come.

I know you'll agree that's an important mission.

Thank you again for joining Defenders of Wildlife. I hope you will increase your commitment to wolves and other wildlife by becoming a Wildlife Guardian today.

Sincerely, Roger Schlickeisen President PS: As a Wildlife Guardian, you will continue to receive our award-winning quarterly magazine, DEFENDERS.

PPS: I have also enclosed a beautiful color photo of a magnificent gray wolf. Please display it with your Wolf Adoption certificate and help spread the word of our urgent work to save America's wolves. Thank you.