UNION COUNTY, Ky. — Eileen Wicker believes in second chances. For the past five months, three bald eagles - who were all found near death - were taken under Wicker's wing and nursed back to health.
"This is just the best gift we could have," she said.
Wicker is part of a the non-profit group Raptor Rehabilitation of Kentucky. The Louisville bird sanctuary has been her second home for 25 years and the birds, she said, are like family.
"I often say I'm getting older, it's time to quit and how do you quit? I can't. I just can't," she said.
After spending thousands of donated dollars on surgery and medicine, Wicker and her team decided to release the birds back into the wild. So on the bank of the Ohio River in Union County - with a crowd capturing and counting down the moments - each bird began to fly again.
"That is just awesome. It is the best feeling," Wicker said with a smile.
This is the first multiple release of bald eagles in the state, so Rusty Fowler and his family drove two and a half hours from Indiana to witness history.
"I've seen the birds live in the wild before but never anything this close or anything," Fowler said.
From an inspired crowd, to an inspiring woman, who proves second chances are all we need to soar.
"If you don't have the passion, there isn't enough money in the world to make you do this," she said.
.jpg)
