Raccoon Rescue Support!

Raccoon Lovers Unite!

I have never done a fundraiser, but Crystal and I want to ask all the raccoon lovers out there if we can come together to support some special raccoon friends doing important work.

Veterinarian Paul Bookbinder and his wife, raccoon rehabber Sarah Bookbinder, are two of the most humble, kind, and generous people you will ever meet. The rehabbers out there may have heard of them as the authors of the basic book on raccoon rehab. Paul and Sarah spent their life’s savings building the Charles N Gordon Wildlife Rehabilitation Center, a nonprofit veterinary, training and wildlife rehabilitation center dedicated to raccoons. They have rehabilitated hundreds of raccoons themselves and helped countless hundreds more by providing other rehabbers with much needed supplies, advice and veterinary help.

Paul and Sarah helped me during the most challenging time our rescue has ever faced. As many of you remember, we lost several of our precious raccoons to a mysterious illness. Sarah was there for me throughout the entire experience, offering as much help, advice, and support that she possibly could. One of the most difficult parts of the whole experience was not understanding what was making them sick. The unknown is always scary, and we needed answers. And thanks to Sarah, we were able to get those. She offered to send off testing to sequence the virus so that we knew exactly what we were dealing with. Knowledge is invaluable, and Sarah is leading the way in helping rehabbers and rescues learn more. Which will help us all protect these amazing animals to the best of our abilities. I will forever be grateful for her support in such a difficult time.

This past July, because he is Paul, Dr. Bookbinder drove TEN HOURS on his day off to help a raccoon in trouble. Unfortunately, he also picked up Covid at the same time. Because of his past cancer treatments, Covid turned into severe pneumonia, which he is still fighting almost six months later.

In 2024, Gordon Wildlife was a finalist in a $150,000 grant application which they were hoping would pay for much-needed renovations and repairs to their wildlife medical and teaching building. They made it to the final round of consideration, but in the end the grant went to an organization that serves people instead of for wildlife.

Paul was so sick this year, he was unable to work full-time for several months on end. When they opened Gordon Wildlife in 2018, Sarah left her job to run it full time without taking a salary, so Paul’s salary pays their personal bills. The year round expenses of running the nonprofit, including the utilities, animal supplies, insurances, and care for their non-releasable sanctuary population, have of course continued, and so, while they have been able to stay afloat personally, they are unable to personally contribute to funding the repairs and improvements that are needed at the wildlife center which they were hoping that the grant would cover.

The Bookbinders are truly a bright light. They work relentlessly out of the goodness of their hearts, doing so much to help make the world better for raccoons and the people who love them. They have dedicated their lives to helping raccoons become more understood, appreciated, and better treated. Gordon Wildlife has paid for studies to help improve and advance raccoon medicine and they are working to try to change the regulations in their state for raccoons. Paul and Sarah are always willing to share the knowledge they have learned about these animals and they are always trying to learn more.

If all of the raccoon lovers out there could donate any amount, no matter how large or small, to show these raccoon superheroes how much their work is valued and help the Bookbinders to keep on helping raccoons, Crystal and I will be forever grateful. Together we can make this year the best one yet for one of the most deserving rescues in the world.