On December 3rd, 2013 we received a Cooper's Hawk with his feathers covered in roofing tar. Originally he was admitted to Peninsula Humane Society in San Mateo. They transferred the bird to International Bird Rescue in Cordelia, as they are the experts at cleaning feathers. It was determined that no product was effective at removing the tar. The only solution was to find a center that could house the bird until he went through a complete molt, dropping and replacing all the damaged feathers. IBR called Wildcare in San Rafael, hoping they could take the bird. Because the molting process would take months, or close to a year, Wildcare wished to find a center that had room for a long term patient. SCWR had just finished the construction of the new Raptor Recovery Center (well, finished enough to house birds, we still have much to do!) and we were honored to take him. Cooper's Hawks are difficult to keep in captivity and prone to injury. He would need a calm, quiet, and spacious environment. We could provide that. Without this new housing, his chances for release were uncertain, at best. Here we are in October, 2014. He is uninjured, with perfect feathers and ready to go. We could not have guessed the first bird to be housed in RRC would be such a difficult case. It was a true challenge to our design and hopes of what we could accomplish with this new facility. With gratitude and a sigh of relief from his caregivers, he was released and given the best second chance imaginable. We are so grateful to all of you who have contributed, and continue to do so, towards the completion of the RRC. We here at SCWR will never forget patient # 1030, the little Cooper's Hawk that not only could, but did!