The Ocean River Institute is raising a cacophony of savvy voices to be heard by decision-makers.

We are speaking out to the Governor to stop the South Florida Water Management District from closing the Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge.

Politics is personal.  You can save wildlife and natural places by joining with us for $5.  We will work with you to craft the most effective personal statement as to why you care.  We will then organize with others and present in a chorus of diverse opinions.  For the price of two regular coffees or one latte, your thoughts expressed in your voice will be heard.

If you are writing from outside of Florida, the Governor will take note because he has no idea how many of your family and friends share in your beliefs, no clue how much of the tip of a social iceberg you represent.  He might not wish to gain a national reputation as the Florida vacation buster. To date, we’ve received articulate comments from 50 states, Washington DC, US Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico.

We’re the Ocean River Institute. If you would take the time to comment, you’re assistance will be most welcomed.  Click here to save the Loxatachee, a Seminole word meaning “river of turtles.”

Here’s a choice selection of comments from all over this land. Note the more detailed and personal the better.  Be respectful. Make it easy for the Governor please a nation and to stop the destruction of the Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge.

As a Floridian and one who’s mom and brother live on the Loxahatchee with their home backing to a natural Everglades fed canal. I Desperately Ask you to continue the agreement and management of the Refuge.  All of the species that live and thrive there have been needed and loved by all for so long!!  “Gumbo Limbo” demonstrates all the good and necessary accomplishments they have made for the turtles. They and my family frequent that establishment often. PLEASE STOP SFWMD from from revoking the agreement. YOU can make this VITAL Difference, PLEASE HELP~~~WE NEED YOU~~~  Laurie Hein, Homosassa FL

[Loxahatchee] turtles are the canaries in the coal mine.  We need to preserve the environment for creatures other than ourselves, or we will end up destroying it for ourselves as well.  L.M. Holmes, Honolulu HI

I am planning a move to Florida this year and am very dismayed to hear this and hoping we can save the Loxahatchee Wildlife Refuge. Lisa Klepek, Glen Ellyn IL

Wildlife is disappearing at an alarming rate everywhere.  Do not retreat from your commitment to manage the refuge to preserve the natural habitat for a rich array of wildlife.  Mrion Tidwell, Merrillville IN

There aren’t many places you can still enjoy the beauty of an undisturbed place like Loxahatchee. I love turtles and birds and want my granddaughter to be able to go there with me and enjoy the beauty. Please continue to co-manage this beautiful place with USFW for our children and their children. Thank you.  Lara Beard, Elizabethtown KY

Loxahatchee was part of the January term course . . . I often found wildlife there that students saw nowhere else during the trips.  It was an important educational resource.    Vinnedge Lawrence, West Baldwin ME

Hopefully, Florida will make good decisions about its environment and wildlife; and, hopefully, we will continue to visit Florida often to enjoy your natural resources and bring our vacation dollars to you. Annie McCombs, Kalamazoo MI

I know and cherish the Loxahatchee. Please do not let it be degraded.  Skip Lazell, Jackson MS

Why would you give this up? Once it’s gone, there’s no getting it back and we need wild areas, desperately! We need to all step up to the plate to try to save our Earth. NASA isn’t going to magically figure out how to colonize somewhere else, you know. Susan Harrie, Grand Forks ND

It includes a critical cypress strand habitat for hundreds of species including two species of rare turtles. Terry Forrest, Bristol TN

Please figure out other ways to manage the city’s waste water. Preserve the Loxahatchee for recreation and wildlife! Thomas Turiano, Wilson WY

 It was working!  Maureen Wheeler, Silver Spring, MD

 It is very important to protect wildlife. A wildlife refuge is an excellent way to help preserve and protect wildlife. Please support the continuation of the collaborative management of the Loxahatchee Natioinal Wildlife Refuge. Thank you. Salme Armijo, Blue Diamond NE

 I have been a resident of Florida and still have many family members who live in the state.   Florida has been ravaged by weather, the rising ocean level, and diseases.  CAN WE AT LEAST NOT DELIBERATELY destroy the Loxahatchee Wildlife Refuge?  Jeanne Bradbury, Flemington NJ

Protect Florida wildlife by working with the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service to protect the Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge and the wildlife within.  The Refuge is a Florida treasure which you, as governor, should value and protect. Thank you. Susan Selbin, Albuquerque NM

River of the Turtles, River of Promises, of Agreements and Collaborative Management.  Your governorship too was a promise to the people and the people do not exist separate from the land, the water, from Nature.  Neither people nor Nature are objects or abstraction.  Thank you for reflecting on your responsibility and promises and Please honor them. Edythe Ann Quinn, Unadilla NY

Florida has a most unusual climate and ecosystem.  When endangered as it is from invasive flora and fauna extra efforts to contain and eradicate these threats must be taken, or you will lose it all. Lam Weisman, Oklahoma City OK

Florida should not only preserve its unique treasures like this for ethical and moral grounds, it is also a money-maker and the principal reason that many of us visit the state. We have nice sandy beaches here in New England, too, but we do not have the natural features of Loxahatchee Refuge, the Everglades, and the Keys. John Burridge, East Providence RI

Please help save our National Wildlife areas of Florida. Please help control invasive plants in Loxahatchee , the River of Turtles. Please protect our last areas of wildlife and ecosystems.  Linda Heagy, Arlington TX

This is the only way that the natural treasure, the Great Florida Birding Trail of the Loxahatchee NWR, can be preserved!  James Hadden, Grafton VA

I visit FL almost once a year and the Loxahatchee Nat’l Wildlife Refuge has been a stop for me several times. I am asking you to protect this place and all the animals that it contains. It is a jewel that Florida has. Please be strong in its protections and do not waver. Diane Clark, Woolwine VA

We need to save what little land we have left, especially critical habitats such as the Loxahatchee.  Angela Mayle, Fairview WV

Remember, we’re the Ocean River Institute. If you would take the time to comment on the Loxahatchee, you’re assistance will be most welcomed. You will be in good company but time is limited.  Once the judge rules it could be closed. Click here to save the Loxatachee, a Seminole word meaning “river of turtles.”