The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service manages our National Wildlife Refuges.
These public lands and waters have been set aside to conserve America's fish, wildlife
and plants.
Donny Browning has worked on Refuges for almost 30 years.
National Wildlife Refuges are special places for wildlife, cultural resources, natural
resources, and for all of us too.
Refuges are protected, managed, and sometimes enhanced on the various areas that we have
for the wildlife species that utilize the areas.
This work creates a diversity of wildlife species in the area and also creates a diversity
of recreational activities for the public to enjoy.
The National Wildlife Refuge System itself started in 1903 with Theodore Roosevelt, and
it was a small island down in Florida, which we're fortunate enough to have here in, of
course, the southeast.
It was set up there to help protect egrets from the plume trade, and through the years
the National Wildlife Refuge System has evolved from just protection to now protection and
also enhancement, where we can, and then also for the public to enjoy the national wildlife
resources.
For example, if you go to Cape Romain on the coast of South Carolina, it's an excellent
place for kayaking.
Or if you go to Santee in South Carolina, you've got an auto tour route that you can
take that takes you into a section of the Refuge that is away from the main office.
And another example of a great opportunity on National Wildlife Refuges is the canoe
trails that we have on Okefenokee Swamp.
I've been very fortunate in my life to enjoy the outdoors and have the opportunity to actually
work in them.
It gives me great pleasure to do what we do for wildlife and see the wildlife actually
being able to use those areas.
It also gives me grew pleasure when I see the public come to those Refuges, and the
families that bring their children, and I hope one day that my daughter can bring her
children to enjoy those same National Wildlife Refuges that we enjoy today.
And it's the reason that we've set National Wildlife Refuges up to where the future generations
can enjoy the same activities and same sounds and sights that I do.