Welcome to Rex the Rhino Conservation Fund

The Rex the Rhino Conservation Fund had its humble beginnings in a friendship that was formed in the bush by two wilderness walking-trail Guides while working for the Natal Parks Board and following in the footsteps of the late great Dr Ian Player.  Frank Carlisle and Malcolm Organ began their conservation careers while guiding wilderness walking trails in Hluhluwe i-Mfolozi Game Reserve in the 1990’s.  After spending many years in Rhino Conversation Management both rangers left the KZN based organization and moved into commercial tourism conservation.  Frank Carlisle started the Bhejane Adventure Group with Bhejane 4x4 Adventures and Mpafa Travel and Malcolm Organ started On Safari Africa.  The two friends continued to work in conservation but desperately wanted to stay involved with their old stomping grounds and the people so closely involved in rhino conservation in this area.  So, together with their new partners, they decided to create the Rex the Rhino Conservation Fund in order to give back to conservation and the heroes on the ground who's work in Rhino Conservation is invaluable ....... and this is how the Rex the Rhino Conservation Fund was created!

Since this time, Rex has travelled through Zululand, the Kalahari, Mozambique, Zambia, Namibia, Botswana and the Knysna Forest.  He has been filmed by Kwela and his story has featured in the Go and DriveOut magazines.  He has already made donations towards rhino poaching awareness and to the hero’s of conservation, the game guards of Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park in KwaZulu Natal, to mention but a few of his stories.

Meet Frank Carlisle and Morne Jonker ....

Frank and Morne will be riding the Glacier Storms River Traverse (mountain bike stage race) between the 9th and 11th August .... Riding for Rex.

This is their message:  

Morne and I started riding bicycles together 45 years ago ..... and here we are, still mates, riding to raise funds for rhinos.

I actually got my first mountain bike, a Diamond Back, by working as a rhino anti-poaching unit officer in Umfolozi Game Reserve in the 1990's.  This is where I fell in love with off-road riding and the joy that mountain biking brings, both from a physical and emotional stand-point.  It only makes sense that it is pay-back time now and I have put in 1000's of km's of training for this event.

My co-conspirator, Morne Jonker, has been roped in by default.  Not only is he one of my closest friends, but he has a deep understanding of and passion for conservation himself.  He, together with a group of family and childhood friends, recently gave me my bike as a milestone birthday gift ..... this I will be riding alongside him between the 9th and 11th August, 40 to 70km per day, in the magnificent setting of the Tsitsikamma mountains and coastline. 

Please help us to raise money to support those who work round the clock, through rain and shine, through sweat, blood and tears, to protect the wonderful creatures through the REX THE RHINO CONSERVATION FUND

Rex the Rhino Conservation Trust's vision is to collaborate with existing rhino protection agencies towards well equipped, trained, highly motivated field rangers for rhino conservation and conservation in general in Hluhluwe iMfolozi Park and other areas of Southern Africa by acquiring support for programmes, while ensuring transparency and accountability to donors and the public.