About Us

Our Mission

Our mission is to promote not only the protection of wildlife and habitat, but also the importance of conservation issues as they relate to the quality of human life. To accomplish this, we strive to achieve the following objectives:

1. To help preserve the delicate balance of local ecosystems and minimize man’s negative impact on area wildlife, we medically care for orphaned and injured indigenous animals and prepare them for release back into the wild. When release is not possible, we provide appropriate habitat areas for them to live the rest of their lives in safety and comfort. These animals are then shared through our education programs.

2. To provide the youth and adults of our community with hands-on educational and recreational experiences that will foster a lifetime of care and respect for America’s wildlife and natural resources.

3. To help save the Eastern Panther from imminent extinction by housing the premier captive breeding and research facility in the country and by working toward repopulating this species in appropriate wilderness areas throughout the east.

History

The Ellijay Wildlife Rehabilitation Sanctuary is a 50-acre facility that medically cares for all species of orphaned and injured wildlife indigenous to Georgia and the southeast. It began 30 years ago when a young boy named Craig Cylke began rescuing and caring for injured animals that he found in the wild. It wasn’t long before the surrounding community learned that Craig would take care of any wild animals in need that were brought to him. Today, the sanctuary is a state and federally licensed facility that remains under the guidance of Craig and his wife, Debbie who are both certified in wildlife rehabilitation.

Six years ago, the sanctuary achieved 501(c)(3) nonprofit status and began to offer outdoor education and summer camp programs to serve the people of the community. To date, the sanctuary’s dedicated staff has educated over 100,000 children and adults through on-site course offerings, summer camps, and mobile education programs. It is their hope that through environmental education, schools, churches, civic groups and families will come to learn about the “Circle of Life” –realizing that if we all help to take care of "mother nature,” she in turn will take care of us.