Frustrated with the lack of action, Eric Pittman and Gregg McElroy founded the Canadian Orca Rescue Society to help create positive change. They campaign tirelessly on behalf of Orcas. Education and Public Awareness are pillars of their work. CORS’s inflatable Orcas can be seen at events across the region promoting environmental awareness. Each inflatable Orca is modelled on an individual of the southern resident pods. Life sized inflatable Orcas are a crowd-pleaser at any event CORS attends, and an opportunity for volunteers to share information about Orcas.CORS is committed to finding solutions to the threats to Orca survival. To save the Orcas in the Salish Sea we must halt climate change. The task may seem impossible, but it can be done — one salmon hatchery at a time, one old-growth forest at a time, one Orca Club at a time.
CORS is currently funded by donations raised by volunteers at events, membership, and out of the pockets of Eric Pittman and Gregg McElroy, the society’s founder/directiors. They have contracted Blue Gorilla Giving Consultancy for 15 hours a week to help them create income streams for CORS. We will shortly embark on the process of creating a three-year strategic plan. We are currently seeking grants from foundations and trusts across Canada to help fund our Orca Clubs pilot project. Next August, based on the results of this project, Blue Gorilla will submit an application to BC Gaming to help fund CORS’s roll-out of Orca Clubs to schools across Greater Victoria.