Fund-Raiser Planned for Shuttered Sanctuary

A host of celebrities and Assemblyman Tom McClintock (R-Northridge) are slated to attend the annual Safari Brunch fund-raiser to benefit the Wildlife Waystation near Lake View Terrace.

The Waystation has been closed to the public since April 7, when the state Department of Fish and Game cited it for violating animal-keeping regulations.

Subsequently, a range of agencies from the Regional Water Quality Control Board to the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office have taken action against the 120-acre exotic animal sanctuary in Angeles National Forest.

“People are coming because they are wondering why an organization that has done so much good and been around for so many years is getting this kind of treatment,” said Waystation Director Martine Colette.

The fund-raiser is scheduled for 11 a.m. Saturday at a private estate in Pasadena.

McClintock, who publicly defended the Waystation against pressure from the Fish and Game Department, is expected to attend, along with celebrities including Johnny Carson, Jeff Goldblum, Robert Fuller, Bernie Kopell, Rhonda Fleming and Jennifer Savage, Colette said.

Colette said she expects the fund-raiser, which garnered $150,000 toward the Waystation’s $2.2 million budget last year, to bring in more than $250,000 this year because of well-wishers who joined the sanctuary’s contributor list after the shutdown.

Some of the Waystation’s animals, such as a Siberian tiger, will be on display, and a live auction will feature a slew of prizes, including a seven-day trip on a sailboat with a staff of five.

For more information and for reservations, contact the Safari Brunch hotline, (818) 566-3556.