For more than 45 years, Lynn Cuny has been helping wild and domestic animals in need of safe and humane rehabilitation and sanctuary, as well as advocating for the humane and respectful care of animals. In 1977, while in her early twenties, Cuny founded Wildlife Rescue & Rehabilitation in her San Antonio, Texas backyard. She saw that many wild animals who suffered and died after encounters with humans could have been saved and, with help, returned to the wild. She also saw that some wild animals could not be released due to the nature of their injuries (or other factors), but could live satisfactory lives in a sanctuary.

As of 2001, Wildlife Rescue & Rehabilitation’s primary base of operations has been 212 acres near Kendalia, Texas. Since its inception, the 501(c)(3) non-profit organization has received more than 200,000 native wild animals. Annually, it rescues over 10,000 animals, and responds to more than 17,000 phone inquiries and requests for help. Over 500 animals are permanent residents because they are non-releasable due to the nature of their injuries, human desensitization, or are non-native species. Accredited by the Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries (GFAS), Wildlife Rescue & Rehabilitation employs approximately 50 full-time staff, who, along with interns, apprentices, and numerous volunteers, carry out its programs every day.

“I have long believed that one of the world’s great tragedies is the lack of understanding and respect shown to the countless animals who inhabit this Earth,” said Cuny. “It was this, and my own compelling need to help them, that moved me to start an organization that works diligently to save the injured, orphaned, and other animals who were all too often ignored.”

Cuny worked diligently for years to encourage and assist sanctuaries in improving their direct care of animals. During this time, she conducted site visits and helped many sanctuaries raise their standards of care. Cuny is also the author of “Through Animals’ Eyes: True Stories from a Wildlife Sanctuary,” published in 1999, and the sequel, “Through Animals’ Eyes, Again: Stories of Wildlife Rescue,” published in 2006.

For her work, Cuny was recently awarded the 2nd Annual Animal Grantmakers Melanie Anderson Lifetime Excellence in Animal Protection Award (Melanie Anderson LEAP Award). The award recognizes animal advocates who have made a substantial and sustained contribution to the field of animal protection.

“The Melanie Anderson LEAP Award embodies a major concern of the Summerlee Foundation’s founder, Annie Lee Roberts, who sought out and embraced animal advocates who pushed boundaries, changed the conversation, and advocated for species and creatures often neglected or overlooked,” said Larry Green, Board president of Animal Grantmakers. “We are sure that Ms. Roberts would have been proud of Lynn Cuny for spending the majority of her life in the challenging field of animal protection, her huge accomplishments on behalf of animals to date, and for showing every animal, whether he or she is a jaguar or a pigeon, the same compassion and respect.”

The Melanie Anderson LEAP Award was established by the Summerlee Foundation and Animal Grantmakers in 2022 to honor Melanie Anderson, a lifelong animal protection advocate and the Summerlee Foundation’s director of animal programs for 32 years. Geared toward lifetime achievement, an award recipient’s body of work reflects a significant impact on non-human animals, especially those widely viewed as among the most overlooked, underfunded, heavily exploited, and in greatest need of support.