Taste a wine paired with just the right appetizer.
Bid on passes to Disney World.
Hang out with an owl.
Eat a five-course meal.
The hundreds of animals that flow through the doors of Woodford Cedar Run Wildlife Refuge, New Jersey’s busiest wildlife shelter, need the support, said executive director of the refuge Jeanne Gural.
“This is our busiest time in the wildlife hospital,” said Gural.
With outdoor activity becoming more appealing with better weather, people tend to find more baby animals that have fallen out of their nests, she said.
“This time of the year, the costs skyrocket,” she said.
With more than 100 animals in the hospital right now, not a single one entered with health insurance, Gural pointed out, and the added clientele requires more staff presence.
“This is the time of the year that we really need this big event,” she said. “This event is pretty important to us. This is not a luxury. This is not extra money. This is money we need to get through the season.”
On Saturday, May 19, from 4:30 p.m. to 8 p.m., the refuge is hosting a Wine and Wildlife Festival — the 11th of its kind.
Tickets are priced at $60 per person and some will be available at the door the night of the event.
Carol Erikson, CBS Philly’s meteorologist, will be a special guest.
Last year, 325 people were in attendance.
“It was just a massive party,” Gural said, with live, folksy music to liven the night.
She hopes a similar number of people will head out to the festival this month, too.
“A lot of our animals actually come to the party,” she said.
Bird handlers will walk around with a trained owl or red-tailed hawk perched on their arm. Snakes and turtles will parade around with the education team.
While all proceeds directly benefit the needs of the refuge, the festival itself will have multiple focuses — from more than 30 different samplings of wine and eight of beer all donated by Canal’s Wine Unlimited, to appetizers assembled by Burlington County College’s culinary program and cheese wedges from Dietz & Watson, to a delectable feast by chef Tony Lawrence, to art and a live auction — no one should go home unfulfilled, Gural explained.
“The food is unbelievable,” she said. “They should not even eat lunch before they come here. It’s so much food.”
If a guest wants to eat nothing but sorbet, she said, they are allowed to do so — because there will still be enough to go around.
There will be vegan and vegetarian options as well to allow for every palate to be satiated.
Classic Cake Company will be donating gelato again this year, she said.
“The flavors are really unusual,” she said.
“This is really a foodie event,” she said. “For the first time ever, we have our appetizer team working with our wine team to look at what goes well (together),” she said, as a sommelier will be on hand “so people can walk away with (learning) something.”
With so much focus on the wine, Gural said that Canals does the organization of alcohol.
“Canals has been doing this every year for us. This is their way of giving back. They do a fantastic job,” she said. “They contact all of the wine distributors.”
Guests are also welcome to bring their own glasses if preferred, she said.
The night will be incredibly casual and guests are free to walk around with their wine glasses and visit with the animals.
Many couples see the night as a great yearly date option as well, she said.
“The food, the wine, the auction items, the crowd, the animals. It really is a lot of fun. We have people look forward to it all year,” she said.
After dinner, which will have two lines to better accommodate the hundreds of attendees, the auction will begin.
“We have some really impressive auction items for people to bid on,” she said.
Board chairman David Stow, who is also a pilot, donated an airplane trip and a breakfast for a couple.
Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson is offering a behind the scenes tour of their animal park, valued at $600.
A bed and breakfast and a salt marsh safari in Cape May are both offering packages.
In addition, people donated baskets to bid on, some with themes — coffee, dogs, garden, and lavender to name a few.
“We’ll have somewhere around 50 items to be auctioned off,” she said, from oil changes to trips for four.
“It’s pretty varied,” she said.
The refuge also aims to make it fun and hosts a “Heads or Tails” game.
“People buy a ticket, then they have a 50/50 shot of winning the big prize,” she said. “They call heads or tails. Those that don’t get it the first round are out” until there is a winner crowned.
And just why does the refuge keep the price of attendance so low?
“We are part of the community,” Gural said. “The economy has hit us all.”
The state, federal and local governments do not fund the refuge, she said. “Not one dime.”
The refuge is instead privately funded 100 percent through individuals.
“We do get grants, but they’re not government grants,” she said.
The event began as a small fundraiser to get the hospital through this season– the one that has always been the most costly with the lowest amount of income — and has remained true to its origins.
“It just got bigger,” she said.
Sometimes, the hospital can have up to 400 animals in need, she said. The refuge also has about 54 resident wildlife that cannot be released that need constant care.
The festival to support the animals has always been held the weekend before Memorial Day, Gural explained, before summer vacations take over peoples’ planners.
“We want people to think of us that weekend,” she said.
IF YOU GO
The refuge is located at 4 Sawmill Road in Medford. Directions are available online at www.cedarrun.org. For any questions, please call the refuge at (856) 983–3329. Tickets are priced at $60 per person and a number of them will be available at the door. The event will run from 4:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Saturday, May 19. Learn more about the refuge itself and the proper protocol if you find a wild animal in need on their website. All proceeds from the night will benefit programs at the refuge.
