Local Student Raises Money for Sick Sea Lion Pups

The Capistrano Dispatch

In response to an unusually large number of sick sea lion pups coming ashore in Orange County, Natalie Schumacher, second-grade student at St. Margaret’s Episcopal School, organized a school fundraiser to collect textiles which were purchased by Compassion Clothing. The school raised 1,260 pounds of clothes to be upcycled or made into yarn and insulation and donated $500 to help the Pacific Marine Mammal Center’s efforts.

In July, the Laguna Beach-based center reported that 98 sea lion pups are being treated. The pups, which were all malnourished, were found along the Orange County coastline, from San Onofre State Beach to Seal Beach. The animals under the center’s care will take two to four months to nurse back to a healthy weight before they can be released back into the ocean.