When an animal rescuer got a phone call
about a pelican with a hurt wing wandering down the road,
he knew he had to help her.
Naude's always saved animals.
Sometimes he rescues them on the beach,
like this seal tangled in a fishing line
or this baby shark
who accidentally got washed ashore
and needed Naude to put him back in the ocean.
Other times, his rescues take him way out on the water,
like when he freed this guy from a plastic bag
or helped an injured sea turtle.
The turtle’s probably thinking, "Thank you, Naude!"
But Naude’s biggest save of all time
was this whale who was stranded on the shore.
Naude gathered friends who worked together
and pushed the humongous animal into deeper water so she could swim safely away.
So as soon as Naude heard about a pelican who needed help, he searched all over.
But he couldn’t find her.
Until the next morning, when he took his son's school class to the beach
and spotted something.
It was the hurt pelican!
Since there was no animal hospital around,
Naude decided to take the hurt bird home.
Where he would take care of her himself.
Before long, Elsa was part of the family.
And she was really happy in her new home.
Naude put medicine in her food
and helped her practice moving to make her wing strong again.
Elsa was basically the queen of the backyard.
Elsa loved her rescuer.
And best of all, she slowly started to get better.
Then, something amazing happened.
One day, Elsa began jumping and flapping her wings.
It was her way of telling Naude that she was ready to try to fly!
So he took her back to the beach where he’d found her.
Though Elsa was a little wobbly at first,
she started running and flapping her wings until
she did it! She was flying!
It was the moment Naude had been waiting for.
It meant Elsa could live on her own in the wild again. Which is where she belongs.
Naude came back to the beach for the next few days to make sure that she wasn’t still there.
And she wasn’t. She had flown away!
For Naude, life is about rescuing animals in trouble.
And seeing his new friend fly strong and free
made him the happiest rescuer on the beach