Not too many folks, as yet at least, know that there are great apes near Sebring Florida.
The Center For Great Apes makes it’s home just over 25 miles from Sebring, near Wauchula, Florida.
More than 30 years ago the founder of the Center for Great Apes was in the jungles of Borneo. Then Patti Ragan was a volunteer, caring for and with orangutans that had been injured or orphaned. Fast forward a few years, and her name comes up in a discussion about what to do with a month old orangutan in distress in Miami. That led to her trying to find a sanctuary for that animal, and then… a baby chimpanzee in need surfaced, and she felt compelled to assist there, too!
To condense what has been, I expect, years of effort in an ongoing labor of love for her and now her colleagues, all of that history lead to the establishment – by her – of the Center for Great Apes in Wauchula in the late 1990’s.
The center started with 15 acres of Florida tropical wildness then, and has morphed into more than 100 acres providing a range of accommodations for orangutans and chimpanzees alike.
More than 25 chimpanzees and more than 20 orangutans live in secure, well attended care at the Center, the place to find Great Apes near Sebring Florida!
Please note that this is NOT a tourist attraction, but a bona fide home for a family of wild animals that through no fault of themselves, can ever be set free back into their own home environments.
However, if you are interested in helping, donating, or becoming a member and visiting the site, you sure are welcome.
For more information, please visit: http://www.centerforgreatapes.org .
And when you meet Bubbles, the chimpanzee once living with Michael Jackson, say “Hi” for me too, okay?
Why not use the comment form to let others know of your experience if you had the opportunity to visit the great apes near Sebring Florida?
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