The Potomac Valley Audubon Society will sponsor a guided tour of an internationally acclaimed wildlife hospital in Waynesboro, Virginia on Saturday, June 20. The tour will begin at 10 a.m. and last about one hour.

It is open to anyone with an interest but space will be limited and registration no later than June 12 is required. Register on the PVAS website at www.potomacaudubon.org.

There will be a fee of $10 for PVAS members and $15 for nonmembers.

Waynesboro is about two hours from the Eastern Panhandle. Those who wish to carpool should plan to meet the trip leader, Debbie Maiorano, in the parking lot of the Inwood Food Lion store on Route 51, just east of I-81, no later than 7:45 a.m.

The hospital that will be toured is the Wildlife Center of Virginia. Founded in 1982, it not only provides quality health care to native wildlife but also is a major teaching and research facility for veterinarians, veterinary technicians, and volunteer wildlife rehabilitators.

Since its inception, it has treated more than 65,000 wild animals, including more than 200 species of native birds, mammals, reptiles, and amphibians.

It has also trained a corps of wildlife medicine practitioners who may now be found on the cutting-edge of wildlife veterinary medicine around the world.

In 2007, the Center received the National Conservation Achievement Award from the National Wildlife Federation as the Conservation Organization of the Year.

The June 20 tour will include a presentation by the Center’s staff, a video about the hospital and a look at the center’s indoor and outdoor facilities.

Afterward, tour participants will have an opportunity to gather for lunch at a nearby restaurant and then join an optional afternoon drive or hike in nearby Shenandoah National Park.

The tour will be held rain or shine.

For more information about the Wildlife Center go to its website at www.wildlifecenter.org.

For more information about the tour, lunch, or optional drive or hike, go to the PVAS website or contact Debbie Maiorano at debbiemm58@aol.com or 540-535-5145.