Rebuilding the Field Station

My name is Dano Grayson, I run a small field station, photography studio and wildlife sanctuary in the Southern Arizona Desert. From the 2016-2019 over a thousand people from all over the world visited the station to photograph the migratory birds, bats and other desert inhabitants that would stop by. I had built a beautiful home and life around nature I had dreamt of since before I could remember

In late 2020, at the end of a year that had already taken so much from so many, tragedy struck yet again. To supplement income from a year without visitors, I had taken up filming positions around the Arizona desert. During one of those endeavors, I was working in a remote location outside of Payson, Arizona when I learned that a fire had occurred at my home, the field station that had seen hundreds of guests over the prior years. Guests including old friends I met on other continents, world renowned camera operators for those high budget nature documentaries, wildlife enthusiasts, writers, artists and poets.

Upon returning home I learned of the total devastation resulting from the fire.

I had lost every personal belonging, all of my gear, computers filled with decades of photos taken of wildlife around the world and nearly my mind.

Despite all the loss, the wildlife I spent my time working with even stopped by to comfort me in days following the fire.

In the time since the fire, I have tried to keep the wildlife coming, my brother had set up go fund me in the immediate aftermath to help me get back on my feet, of which I am incredibly grateful for, however inflation and skyrocketing labor fees prevented me from rebuilding the home in a conventional manner. Being close to nature often mean expensive service chargers and long travels for any sort of construction crew. I contacted over 10 contractors, 2 returned my calls, 1 made the trip out to the station and quoted me $640,000 for a 1200 sqft structure.

I have learned a lot in the time since the fire and with the realization that it can be gone in the blink of eye, I’ve decided to take on the task of building my home myself. Any donations given will go to materials, tools and the fees incurred with rebuilding an eco friendly, field station to serve as a place to charge your gear and rest your head while you encounter the wonders the desert has to offer.