Is Your View from the River Worth Protecting?

From Executive Director, John Searby:

All of us have our own “river story,” and mine is richer because of my time leading Catawba Riverkeeper. Recently, I made the difficult decision to resign my position as Executive Director to pursue my role as Executive Director at Daniel Stowe Conservancy.

No matter where you live across the basin, we all have a reason to love the Catawba-Wateree River. The river not only provides recreation and respite for many of us, but it is also our drinking water source and our generator of energy.

So, in this, I ask you – Is your view from the river worth protecting? If so, I’d encourage you to support the work of Catawba Riverkeeper. With this, I have created a matching gift campaign, to help Catawba Riverkeeper plan 2026 projects and initiatives with confidence and help them transition into the next chapter of the organization. I hope you will join me by giving a gift today to double your impact for our local lakes, rivers, and creeks that provide so much for the Carolinas. All gifts, up to $5,000, will be matched dollar-for-dollar.

We represent ALL the nearly 4 million people that call the counties of the Catawba River Basin home, and I have seen first hand how hard the staff are working every day on behalf of YOUR river. Because no matter what your view of the river is, it is YOUR view of YOUR river.

These waters belong to you and I who call this basin home. Catawba Riverkeeper is here to make sure that our river has a voice that can speak up for stronger water quality regulations, hold polluters accountable for their actions, advocate for state, county, and municipal protections of our river, and educate our fellow residents about the importance of the river and how they can help protect it.

Sincerely,