In celebration of Save The Frogs Day on April 28, we’re hosting a film screening of The Toad Detour, a beautiful documentary highlighting one community’s efforts to save their local amphibians in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. 

Each spring, toads and other amphibians wake from their winter slumber and migrate to vernal pools to breed. Sadly, they often have to cross roads to get there and many are killed by people driving their cars over them. The creation of the Toad Detour program highlights just one way people can help save some of the frogs.

Human-caused threats to toads are the biggest concern and include the climate crisis, water quality issues, and habitat destruction, but the important thing is that there is something we can do about it.

Join us for a screening of this wonderful film, followed by a Q & A with members of the original Toad Detour project, In Defense of Animals’ Campaign Director Lisa Levinson and Doug Wechsler, and the film’s creator Burgess Coffield.

Who: In Defense of Animals and Toad Detour volunteers Lisa Levinson and Burgess Coffield
What: Save The Frogs Day The Toad Detour film screening
When: Friday, April 28 at 10 a.m. PT/1 p.m. ET
Where: www.idausa.org/ToadDetour
Why: Toads and other amphibians face the serious threat of cars when attempting to cross roads during their spring migrations. Join us on the 15th annual Save The Frogs Day to watch this heartwarming film and see how one community saved the toads in their area. Get inspired and start a crossing of your own!
More information: View the event on Facebook

Burgess Coffield Photo: Burgess Coffield

Burgess Coffield, husband, and father of four, currently works as a full-time video editor in Salt Lake City, Utah. He has always been drawn to stories that most people may not see, but are worth telling. After making The Toad Detour, Burgess has made short documentaries about postpartum depression and the effects of obsessive-compulsive disorder. His short film After Birth won Best Short Documentary at the Los Angeles Short Film Festival. He has also done some short horror films which have played at the Salt Lake Comic Con. When he's not making movies, he and his wife Amy love being in their garden tending to their variety of cut flowers, fruits, and veggies.

Lisa Levinson Photo: In Defense of Animals

Lisa Levinson, Campaign Director for In Defense of Animals, started the Toad Detour in 2008 to help migrating toads cross a busy road in Philadelphia. The Detour grew to over 200 eager volunteers with popular Toad Walks. Besides being the subject of this documentary, it is also a children’s book. The Schuylkill Center for Environmental Education adopted the Toad Detour in 2012 and it’s still going strong!

Register now: www.idausa.org/ToadDetour