In early 1996 Friends of Africa was asked to participate in the Hirola Antelope Conservation Project in memory of Mr. Bill Woodley, former Kenya Wildlife Service game warden. The Hirola Project’s purpose is to translocate a number of this nearly extinct species of antelope which are threatened by heavy poaching on the Kenya-Somali border. These antelope are being sent to government and private game reserves throughout Kenya, which are better equipped to offer the protection to the critically endangered Hirola Antelope.
Ms. Lucile Ford of Nairobi contacted Friends of Africa International to request assistance in the transfer of U.S. donations towards this project. Friends of Africa International collected $30,000 on behalf of the Hirola Antelope Project from a Mellon Foundation grant. Friends of Africa International later dispersed an additional $3,900 for the purchase of 10 antelope radio collars, which were shipped to the Kenya Wildlife Service.