Foundations
Saving Canada’s species at risk is a monumental task. Wildlife Preservation Canada believes that our success cannot be achieved without strong partnerships and generous funding.
We want to thank the foundations and organisations below for their investment in our hands-on species recovery.
Featured Foundations
Hagen Family Foundation
The Hagen Family Foundation has been a generous and valued supporter of Wildlife Preservation Canada since 2021 contributing to our direct, hands-on care and recovery efforts for endangered species.
Established in 2005, the Foundation continues the Hagen family’s long-standing commitment to animal welfare and conservation, most recently dedicating a gift in memory of their mother Marianne Hagen, who passed away in 2024. This donation was directed to the recovery efforts for B.C. Fraser Valley’s western painted turtle and the bumble bee program to rebuild wild bee populations needed to sustain ecosystems.
“We believe in a world where animals, both wild and domestic, can thrive in a safe and healthy environment. Our contributions allow us to extend our commitment to animal welfare beyond the Hagen Group portfolio of pet products and into the natural world. Together, we aim to make a real difference for endangered species and the ecosystems they call home.” ~ Mark Hagen, Director at Hagen Group
Hagen Group this year celebrated 70 years in business – in 1955 Rolf C Hagen got off a boat from Germany and started importing European Pet products and exported bird seed.
Through their Foundation, the Hagen family supports a variety of causes to foster and promote relief of poverty, the advancement of education and other philanthropic purposes, such as artistic, social and conservation efforts.
We extend our heartfelt gratitude to the Hagen family for their continued support which makes a meaningful impact on our mission to protect wildlife and preserve biodiversity.
Hodgson Family Foundation
The Hodgson Family Foundation has been a generous supporter of Wildlife Preservation Canada’s Eastern Loggerhead Shrike Recovery Program since 2015. The Foundation’s interest and funding support for this program grew out of the late Patrick C. Hodgson’s love of birds and the environments where they live, with concern for shrikes in particular.
The Hodgson Family Foundation’s generous contributions to shrike research continue to play an essential role in advancing our conservation efforts. No one else in the world is learning how to release migratory songbirds to save them from extinction which makes our work more vital than ever.
“Wildlife Preservation Canada is accomplishing significant success with multiple wild species,” said one of the Hodgson Family Foundation’s Directors Kate Hodgson. “We have been consistently impressed with the results of the Eastern Loggerhead Shrike Recovery program, encouraging our long-term support of their efforts.”
The Hodgson Family Foundation supports Canadian charities, with focus that includes well-defined projects in environmental conservation. We are grateful to the Hodgson Family Foundation for their support and commitment to WPC and helping us continue to develop our methods for saving the eastern loggerhead shrike from extinction.
The Gordon & Patricia Gray Animal Welfare Foundation
The Gordon & Patricia Gray Animal Welfare Foundation is a private, family foundation. The Gray family philanthropy reflects a deep-rooted sense of responsibility to help care for and protect vulnerable species.
The Foundation strives to help protect wild and domestic animals whose lives and species are in danger. Since its inception in 2010, the Foundation has supported more than 65 charities which serve to protect and care for a wide range of animals, birds and sea life.
“We are thrilled to support WPC in the incredible work that they do!” – Marcy Baldry, Executive Director, Gordon & Patricia Gray Animal Welfare Foundation.
We are grateful to the Gordon & Patricia Gray Animal Welfare Foundation for their very generous contribution to WPC’s bumble bee conservation lab. Their support and commitment will help to build on our successes and move the program forward quite significantly.
The Westaway Charitable Foundation
The Westaway Charitable Foundation has been a generous Wildlife Preservation Canada supporter for over 20-years contributing to our direct, hands-on care and recovery efforts for endangered species. Beginning in 2002, the Westaway Foundation has provided valuable unrestricted support allowing WPC to direct the funds to the most urgent needs as identified by our Action Plan (updated annually).
A heartfelt thank you to Peter and Brigitte Westaway and the Westaway Charitable Foundation, for their generous contribution to establish the Westaway Snake Conservation Fund. Providing annual support for WPC’s highest priority snake recovery projects their financial commitment will help us build on our successes and continue to further our impact.
“WPC has for some time being doing incredible work in re-establishing snake populations
for species-at-risk. This new fund is intended to support and encourage development of this
important work and to ensure it continues well into the future.” – Peter Westaway
Peter Westaway spent his early summers in Georgian Bay where he developed a profound interest in the wildlife of the area. “Many of the species I knew there back in the 1950’s have disappeared or are endangered. For example,the Eastern Spotted Turtle, once very common in Georgian Bay, is now found only at Long Point on Lake Erie. We feel it imperative to do whatever we can to preserve species such as the Eastern Fox Snake, which are endangered, and the work of WPC strives to do exactly that”.
Through their Foundation, Peter and Brigitte Westaway support a variety of health, environmental and arts organizations contributing to critical projects/programs across the country. We are grateful to the Westaway CharitableFoundation for their years of support and commitment to Canada’s endangered species.
Alan and Patricia Koval Foundation
Pat and Alan Koval of the Alan and Patricia Koval Foundation, have been loyal donors to WPC since 1996. Since 2017 their Foundation has been providing funding for WPC’s New Noah program – a program that began in 1988 and has given young biologists in Canada the opportunity of a lifetime. Each year, WPC receives dozens of applications from post-secondary graduates across Canada for the New Noah program. A single recipient is chosen for this coveted position which consists of 12-weeks of intensive theory, at the Durrell Conservation Academy on the island of Jersey in the U.K. followed by six months of practice experience with species and habitat recovery teams saving species on the island of Mauritius and its offshore islands.
“Over the course of our lives, we’ve witnessed firsthand the mounting pressures on our natural world – and, in particular, the twin crises of rapid biodiversity loss and climate change. It gives us great pleasure to support Wildlife Preservation Canada, which is delivering conservation projects that will help to combat these twin crises, as well as playing a critical role in training our next generation of conservationists.”
The Alan and Patricia Koval Foundation is a private charitable foundation which funds programs primarily devoted to conservation, environmental sustainability, and animal welfare. In addition to their roles as directors of their Foundation, Pat is the Chair of U.S.-based Turtle Survival Alliance and of Toronto Region Conservation Foundation, the Vice-Chair of Nature Conservancy of Canada’s Ontario Board, and a director of Lewa Wildlife Conservancy Canada and U.S-based Rainforest Trust. Alan and Pat are also members of the global Advisory Council of Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS).