OUR IMPACT
Americans love recreating on the water, and when they do – it’s most likely on a lake or waterway managed by the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), the largest provider of water-based recreation in the country! The Corps Foundation is the only nationwide nonprofit organization dedicated exclusively to supporting our nation’s lakes, rivers and the lands surrounding them. The Corps Foundation works to connect contributors, businesses, communities and “Friends” organizations to benefit visitors and help ensure healthy lakes and waterways for current and future generations.
Watch and learn more about the Corps Foundation’s work.
BREAKING NEWS
HOW WE ARE HELPING
Supporting Recreation
Did you know that USACE operates and manages over 430 recreation sites and 12 million acres of land and waters in 42 states? Over 270 million visitors annually enjoy the recreation activities at these sites, and their tourism dollars support local, mostly rural, gateway communities. Federal funding for boating and fishing facilities and management has declined in spite of increased public demand. LEARN MORE…
Donations and memberships to the Corps Foundation provide financial support to improve programs and facilities that directly benefit the public.
Stewarding Public Lands
We partner with agencies, organizations and local community efforts to sustain operations, improve recreational facilities, preserve natural and cultural resources and enhance the visitor experience. The Corps Foundation pursues a variety of fundraising, and grant opportunities to help keep USACE public lands open to the public, support the outdoor recreation economy and leverage public-private resources.
Education and Advocacy
Visitor safety is a #1 priority for USACE. The Corps Foundation supports USACE and the efforts of their employees and volunteers to educate the visiting public in ways that promote safe and sustainable use of lands and waters managed by USACE. The Corps Foundation has secured over $1 million in funds to help promote the award-winning Life Jackets Worn…Nobody Mourns campaign. Free campaign materials are available for at PleaseWearIt.com and by following Please Wear It on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
The Corps Foundation educates and supports the visiting public and volunteers to promote safe and sustainable use of Corps lands and waters. Visitor safety is the #1 goal when using lakes and waterways managed by USACE. The Corps Foundation secured $1 million in funding for the award-winning “Life Jackets Worn…Nobody Mourns” campaign for water safety. Read about our success at PleaseWearIt.com.
The Corps Foundation advocates for increased funding to address operational needs, unfunded maintenance and infrastructure restoration. We advocate for policy changes to increase opportunities for partnering, and leverage public-private resources. We work to build a case for stakeholder support by communicating the limitations of Federal Funding and the importance of partnerships to help meet public demand.
PLEASE SUPPORT OUR WORK
Why Join
People join the Corps Foundation to help keep access available to their favorite lake or waterway. Your financial support benefits the parks, and the volunteers who dedicate their service to maintaining water recreation for everyone. JOIN US…
HOW YOU CAN HELP
The Corps Foundation uses 100% of your membership and donation funds to directly support education programs, stewardship projects and contribute toward partnership opportunities. Americans are enjoying their public lands more than ever before. In fact, outdoor recreation now comprises over 2% of the American economy. Despite this demand, public lands agencies, including the US Army Corps of Engineers, continue to face reduced Federal funding that could impact your access to lands and waters of the US.
Your financial support helps Corps projects and their friends groups connect, grow, and increase their capacity to fulfill the Corps’ natural resource education mission on lakes and waterways across America.
Advocate for America’s Waterways!
Advocacy Toolkit PDF
Advocacy Toolkit XLSX
See our latest advocacy efforts here.
Water Water Everywhere
Thanks to the Corps, there are countless parks at the many lakes and waterways. Click on the map to find your favorite.
THE LATEST FROM OUR FACEBOOK PAGE
Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Progressive Insurance® supports The Corps Foundation with Life Jacket Program to help prevent drownings and generate awareness of boating safety countrywide.
May 12, 2025 –– The Corps of Engineers Natural Resources Education Foundation (The Corps Foundation) is pleased to announce that Progressive Insurance, the leading provider of boat insurance, is providing significant support of life jackets to help reduce preventable drownings at U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) lakes and river projects across the country.
The program includes more than 5,450 life jackets for adults that will be used at USACE life jacket loaner stations. The life jackets are being procured and distributed to USACE locations that have experienced the most water-related public recreation fatalities. The life jackets will be available for adults to borrow at no cost and return at the end of the day. They will be located at USACE-managed facilities where they are accessible to boaters who may not be properly equipped.
“As the leader in boat insurance covering over 1.8 million watercraft, we want to make sure people are not only insured on the water, but also protected with the proper safety equipment,” said Rick Stern, boat product manager at Progressive. "Seeing the number of drownings that have happened in the last decade on waterways across the country, we are proud to work with The Corps Foundation to support the availability of life jackets that can help reduce these tragedies and allow communities to enjoy safer times on the water."
Adult size U.S. Coast Guard-approved life jackets were distributed because USACE is one of the nation’s leading federal providers of outdoor and water-based recreation. According to USACE public recreation fatality statistics from the past ten years, 86% were 18 and older, 88% were male and 89% were not wearing a life jacket. This initiative aligns with Progressive’s dedication to supporting community safety and responsible boating practices, and with the USACE mission to safeguard public enjoyment of natural resources.
“We are grateful for Progressive’s generous support of this initiative," said Greg Miller, chairperson of The Corps Foundation. "Their commitment to enhancing boater safety is invaluable as we work together to help protect visitors at U.S. Army Corps of Engineers lakes and river projects across the country."
In addition to always wearing a life jacket when boating, boaters are encouraged to take other steps to ensure their safety on the water:
• Check the weather forecast and file a trip plan with family and friends.
• Be aware of your surroundings and know the weight capacity of your vessel.
• Maintain your boat and routinely check electrical, fuel, and auxiliary power systems.
• Don’t use intoxicants while boating—boating under the influence of alcohol or marijuana reduces reaction times and can lead to accidents.
For more boating safety information, please visit www.boatingsafety.info.
About the Corps of Engineers Natural Resources Education Foundation: The Corps Foundation is a not-for-profit educational foundation incorporated in 2006 to support U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) managed lakes and waterway sites nationwide. The Corps Foundation operates in a cooperative relationship with USACE to foster contributions and partnerships that support environmental and recreation projects. They also engage the support of members, contributors, businesses, communities, and “Friends” organizations to collaborate with USACE in providing vital services to the public.
About Progressive
Progressive Insurance® makes it easy to understand, buy and use car insurance, home insurance, and other protection needs. Progressive offers choices so consumers can reach us however it's most convenient for them — online at progressive.com, by phone at 1-800-PROGRESSIVE, via the Progressive mobile app, or in-person with a local agent.
Progressive provides insurance for personal and commercial autos and trucks, motorcycles, boats, recreational vehicles, and homes; it is the second largest personal auto insurer in the country, a leading seller of commercial auto, motorcycle, and boat insurance, and one of the top 15 homeowners insurance carriers.
Founded in 1937, Progressive continues its long history of offering shopping tools and services that save customers time and money, like Name Your Price®, Snapshot®, and HomeQuote Explorer®.
The Common Shares of The Progressive Corporation, the Mayfield Village, Ohio-based holding company, trade publicly at NYSE: PGR.
End of Press Release
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Wonderful!
Impacts to Recreation Access Managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
The recreation program for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) is under threat! Closures and reduced services announced for the 2025 recreation season. Due to reduced staffing many campgrounds, visitor centers, and day use areas at multiple recreation areas across the nation are scheduled for closure. Your favorite recreation site may be one of them!
On Feb. 28, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered a Department of Defense civilian hiring freeze, citing President Trump's direction to streamline the federal workforce. This action is resulting in the widespread loss of lake access and services due to limited staffing. Recreation areas are managed by career professionals who safeguard public areas from vandalism, overuse, and assure public safety. These are not the only impacts to hundreds of park rangers, natural resource management specialists and others responsible for the lake recreation programs. These park professionals live in your communities and contribute to their economies.
In addition, Deputy Secretary of Defense Stephen Feinberg recently directed Army leaders to analyze their organizational structure in an effort to advance Pete Hegseth’s initiative to reshape the civilian workforce by reductions-in-force (RIF) of permanent employees. One of the stated guiding principles was that missions that do not contribute to “war fighting”, like recreation, should be prioritized for privatization.
In addition to the loss of public access and visitor services, local communities rely on outdoor recreation on lakes and rivers managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to support their local economies. The outdoor recreation economy is now at $3.1 trillion with boating and fishing as the largest component.
Contact your Congressional representatives NOW to voice your opposition to these DOGE staffing cuts and their impacts to lake recreation by using the Corps Foundation Advocacy Toolkit found on the link www.corpsfoundation.org . Don’t allow your favorite lake to close!
www.corpsfoundation.org
The Corps Foundation is the only nationwide nonprofit organization dedicated exclusively to supporting the vast areas managed by the US Army Corps of Engineers—our nation’s lakes, rivers and the l...0 CommentsComment on Facebook
Federal Lands Recreation Under Threat!
Are you an avid outdoor enthusiast? The Corps Foundation wants you to be informed about changes that may affect your access to Federal lands. The new administration’s emphasis on cost cutting is no doubt welcomed by many however, recent Executive Orders, as well as Office of Personnel Management and Office of Management and Budget propose reorganization and cost-cutting that will result in widespread impacts to all Federal land management agencies. Policies like federal workforce buyouts, firing of probationary employees and the end of remote work will most certainly impact the recreation programs and services the public enjoys.
The Corps Foundation is writing to ask you to take immediate action to reverse the recent staffing cuts to land management agencies like the U.S. Forest Service (USFS), National Park Service (NPS), and Bureau of Land Management (BLM), US Fish and Wildlife Service and the U.S Army Corps of Engineers. These agencies play a crucial role in maintaining our public lands and ensuring that they remain accessible, safe, and well-preserved for the millions of Americans who depend on them for recreation, jobs, and community well-being.
What Are the Impacts? These cuts disproportionately impact staff responsible for visitor services, trail maintenance, campground management, access to boat launching, emergency response, and land restoration efforts like reforestation and invasive species removal. As visitation to public lands continues to rise, these cuts will have immediate and lasting consequences for the outdoor recreation economy and public safety, including affecting visitor experiences in the outdoors.
The outdoor recreation economy in the US is $3.1 trillion. Local regional and gateway communities largely depend on outdoor recreation to their local Federal lands as their driving economic factor. Impacts to parks and other Federal lands also affect the nearby communities.
Why is the Corps Foundation Concerned?
The Corps Foundation is the only nationwide nonprofit organization dedicated exclusively to these lakes, rivers and the lands managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE). Over 260 million visitors boat, camp, hike and fish on over 400 recreation projects around the US. The Corps Foundation to ensure access to the lakes and waterways. Current efforts to make indiscriminate cuts without evaluating impacts to those programs and services that the public values will likely result in the closing of parks and launching ramps, less public safety, and a deterioration of natural resources. The Corps Foundation will be monitoring the impacts closely and urging all those affected to make their voices heard.
What can you do to help?
Please contact your Congressional representatives to urge them to reverse course and make it an urgent priority to restore funding and support for Federal land management agencies. Public lands are a national treasure, and the dedicated staff who manage them must be adequately supported to ensure that these lands remain healthy and accessible for all.
Editor's Note: In addition to contacting your members of Congress about threats to the Natural Resources Community of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, please let them know that our sites may not be sustainable due to the current hiring freeze. Please act!!!
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Volunteer Excellence Coins: Jack and Linda Croach
Jack and Linda Croach have been a part of the Allatoona Lake Volunteer Program on and off since 2017. In seven full years of service, they have completed 6,616 hours with most of those hours being completed on the Allatoona Lake Water Safety Program. While they do have other duties such as working the front desk and completing recreation area inspections, it is water safety where they have their passion. There is not one aspect of the Water Safety Program that they have not been involved with over the years. They have presented hundreds of water safety programs to thousands of people. They take part in booths at events, put up water safety banners, check life jacket loaner areas, organize bulletin boards, and inventory water safety materials. They staff a water safety tent on busy Allatoona beaches and day use areas throughout the early summer and have worked well with the rangers. They are responsible for awarding adult visitors with “I Got Caught” prizes for wearing their life jackets. They have been a true asset for Allatoona making it possible to present more water safety to the public when a park ranger is not available. This is their last summer, they will be retiring from their second career in September and they will be greatly missed.
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Lake Allatoona Association
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Friends of Cordell Hull Lake receive Achievement Certificate and Coin
Spencer Taylor, Natural Resource Specialist
FRIENDS of Cordell Hull Lake (LRN) attended a meeting where the local project staff presented the 2023 Excellence in Partnership Certificate of Achievement and Coin to the FRIENDS Group.
Although the group was not selected as the recipient of the Excellence in Partnership Award, they were still ecstatic to receive the Achievement Certificate and Coin.
They have been a huge asset to the Cordell Hull Lake staff in the short time of their existence and the local Corps office looks forward to working with them for many years to come.
#friendsofcordellhulllake #cordellhulllake #LRN #fochl #volunteeraward #Volunteer #appreciation #service #EnduringService #enduring #applications #corpslakes #corpswaterways #lakes #waterways #corpsfoundation #conservation #education #recreation #safety #community #engagement #CommunityEngagement #uslakes #USLAND #uswaterways #exceptional
Friends Of Cordell Hull Lake
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