Popular Bat Zone faces shutdown after co-founder terminated

The nonprofit that runs the popular Bat Zone in Pontiac is facing shutdown amid financial troubles and the termination of its co-founder, an advisory board member says she was told by the board president.

Rob Mies — who started the Organization for Bat Conservation in 1992 — acknowledges he was fired as executive director on Feb. 5 and removed from the board of directors on Feb. 18. He also says that two employees accused him of inappropriate workplace behavior, an accusation he denies.

The firing has left unanswered questions about what will happen to the more than 250 animals at the Bat Zone.

Mies said he was not given a reason for his termination.

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The nonprofit’s board members — Danielle Todd, Chris Howe, Bill Scullon, Jerry Mitchell and Mark Hillman — did not return messages left by the Free Press.

After Mies — who handled the organization's funds — was terminated, the board began to investigate and discovered the numbers were not adding up properly and the organization was in financial distress, according to Philip Garofalo, who worked at OBC for three years before quitting 2½ months ago because the "environment was toxic."

Mies said before he was fired, there was $50,000 in the checking account and the organization owed $15,000 to Midwest Bat Working Group. He added that OBC began paying off bills in full and realized then it was running out of money.

"When I left, there were plenty of funds. When ties were severed, they didn't reach out to me and had no knowledge of the $15,000 we owed," said Mies. "It was miscommunication on their behalf, not a mismanagement of funds on mine."

Garofalo also said two employees reached out to the board with allegations of sexual harassment.

Aja Marcato, former program director at OBC, cited Mies for the reason she quit her job. She said Mies groped at least one employee without consent.

"There was sexual misconduct. We tried to deal with it internally and it was not handled properly," said Marcato. "Once Rob knew that people in the organization knew what was going on, he began bullying people he assaulted."

Mies said the employees who reported him cited his tendency to give hugs, put his arm around people and use endearing titles.

He said it was brought to his attention in April 2017 and once he discovered people were uncomfortable with his actions, he never repeated them again.

"I started this organization to be run like a family and I treat my colleagues like that," said Mies. "It's disappointing that in today's discussion of sexual harassment, a hug can be considered crossing the line."

Mies added that the employees who reported him to the board may have done so because they were not fond of his personality or the way he managed the organization.

A board member who serves in an advisory position, Treger Strasberg, called Mies a gifted leader. Strasberg was on the board for about five years before moving to an advisory role two months ago. She did not play a role in Mies’ firing.

“Any accusations of sexual harassment, I would be very leery of. He’s extraordinarily professional in my opinion,” she said.

Strasberg said after she told board president Danielle Todd in an e-mail she was disappointed by Mies' firing, Todd responded in an e-mail that the board was moving to dissolve the Organization for Bat Conservation because it was insolvent.

“I have never been contacted by the board for other options besides dissolution,” she said. “I think it’s a huge blow to the conservation community.”

Strasberg said she has offered to help keep the organization financially afloat on a temporary basis.

Tim Travis, president of Goldner Walsh Garden and Home in Pontiac, who at one point was a candidate for the board, also would like to see it saved.

“The impact that it has on bat awareness and the importance of caring for that, and the environmental impact, agricultural impact … that message needs to get out. And (there’s) no better person than Rob Mies to present that mission nationally," he said.

Although the Bat Zone is no longer open to the public, the more than 250 animals — which include bats, owls, snakes, squirrels and a sloth — are being cared for by a few remaining employees. Other staff has been let go.

OCB released a statement regarding its plans for the animals.

"The animals continue to be our utmost priority and we will make sure they have happy, healthy new homes," said the statement. "We are working diligently with experts in the field to select the new homes that are best equipped to care for the animals and to transfer the animals safely."

Mies is calling for the resignation of the board members to "save the organization."

"Non-profits today seem to be run by administrators and businesspeople, not people with passion and in the actual field," said Mies.

Contact Omar Abdel-Baqui: 313-222-8850 or oabdelbaqu@freepress.com. Staff writer Ann Zaniewski contributed to this report.