Friends of Africa International Advisory Board
Don Hunt, Co-Founder, Mount Kenya Wildlife Conservancy and Game Ranch
Born in 1931, Don Hunt became known as B’Wana Don, host of a 1960’s television program by the same name featuring wild and domestic animals. In 1964, after filming 130 episodes of the show in Kenya, Mr. Hunt met actor William Holden, who would eventually become his partner in the Mount Kenya Game Ranch along with Julian McKeand, former professional hunter turned game warden, and Iris, a German-born art and Africa enthusiast who would later become Don’s wife. Don and Iris founded the Mount Kenya Animal Orphanage and created a successful method of rehabilitation and release of wildlife. After the sudden tragic death of Bill Holden in 1981, the couple recommitted themselves to the project and continued to meet most of the cost over-runs from their own personal earnings and savings. They joined with actress Stefanie Powers in contributing to the creation of a unique permanent memorial to their close friend through the fulfillment of his long-standing wish to draw the new generations of young Africans into the cause of preserving their own natural heritage. He’d had in mind a structured program of encouragement, information and education and it was for this purpose that the William Holden Wildlife Education Center was conceived and developed. The Mount Kenya Game Ranch/Mount Kenya Wildlife Conservancy is now a recognized and significant link in the world-wide network of conservation organizations.
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