Ila Marie Fox "Ila" Loetscher

Known as the Turtle Lady, Ila Loetscher began caring for sea turtles in the early 1960s, working with the Adams family to collect eggs to protect them from poachers at the Rancho Nuevo rookery beach in eastern Mexico, and to establish a new nesting site north of the border. In 1966, she began hand-rearing weak hatchlings, gradually embarking on a new rehabilitation chapter using tanks in her South Padre Island home’s backyard. With time, she gained national attention and support through appearances with costumed turtles on major TV shows, including the Johnny Carson Tonight Show. In 1977, she founded the non-profit, Sea Turtle, Inc., which continues to rescue and recover sea turtles, and to teach the public about their conservation.