Silent Heroes
St. Simons Island seems an odd place to see what looks like a safari jeep with picture of Africa,
but it’s right at home at 1 Retreat Place. This is the new headquarters for the Silent Heroes Foundation, a nonprofit organization that is committed to enhancing both animal and human health in Africa and to protecting and conserving its wildlife and endangered species. Its founder, Dr. Hayley Adams, D.V.M., is a new resident of St. Simons Island who has been visiting Africa and actively participating in veterinary, wildlife, and conservation efforts there for more than 19 years. She created the Silent Heroes Foundation in order to fulfill a vital need for supplies and training that exists in veterinary medicine and wildlife conservation in Africa.
The Foundation’s mission is to acquire and distribute crucial supplies, such as medicines, to veterinarians and conservationists in Africa; to provide equipment and training to park rangers and conservationists working in the continent’s parks and preserves; and to research and educate on the prevention of disease transmission between domestic animals, wildlife and
humans. While Dr. Adams and her team work on a completely pro bono basis, they need funding to ship supplies overseas, to purchase supplies that cannot be sourced through donations of used supplies, to support the education of African veterinary students, and to promote community health initiatives through the purchase of vaccines and medications. Contributions to the Foundation not only make a difference to endangered species conservation efforts, but to many veterinary and community health projects supported by the Foundation throughout sub-Saharan Africa. Dr. Adams hopes to raise local awareness of these needs and invites the community to visit the Silent Heroes Foundation headquarters, which also houses a gift boutique of fair trade items from Africa. Learn more at thesilentheroes.org.