Chesapeake Bay Foundation

My recent eight year tenure on Virginia Beach School Board (including my three years serving as Chair, 2020-2022) offers me additional incentives to remain a CBF donor. Virginia Beach City Public Schools (VBCPS) hosts an Environmental Studies Program at the Virginia beach-based, bayfront Brock Center Environmental Center -- a joint venture between CBF, VBCPS, and the city of Virginia Beach. Sophomores from any of our 11 comprehensive high schools are eligible to a apply for this half day program for juniors and seniors. I had the honor of approving this hands-on academic program as an elected official, and was also present for the groundbreaking AND opening of our dedicated new classroom, so generously donated by Joan Brock.

What the Urban Restoration Manager in Richmond, VA has been able to accomplish planting trees, transforming parking lots into gardens, and activating the community to care for our section of the Chesapeake Bay watershed is such a brilliant testimony to humanity!

Like many our family spent a few precious moments a year exploring the Chesapeake Bay on trips to relatives in Maryland. As an advocate/volunteer/Master Gardener with a love for native plants and a healthy environment - this organization checks all my boxes.

Because we need water, fish, birds, trees, air, beauty. we need to clean up and to fix the harm we have done. then to keep up the improvements and maintain a health bay.

My increasing concern for our precious earth has led me to support two organizations that I believe are doing an important job in not only protecting, but restoring the environment in my "neighborhood". The Chesapeake Bay Foundation, with its multipronged effort to address the agricultural practices in several states that harm the Bay, plant trees, lobby state legislatures and the federal government, restore reefs and plant oysters , and educate teachers and students is one of them. The Foundation has a proven track record and is making a measurable impact on efforts to protect and restore a national treasure that is a resource for food, for shipping and for pleasure for so many.
Randy Ruffin

An excellent agency that is solely focused on protecting and enhancing the Chesapeake Bay and surrounding environs. Everything in this region depends upon a clean Bay to thrive.

I am 58 years old now. All my life, I have watched the Chesapeake Bay Foundation bring the Bay back from ruin to a living, productive, and economically enhanced future. As a child, I saw bumper stickers for Save the Bay and thought, I hope we can. I love and care about The Chesapeake Bay for so many reasons. I donate monthly and on Giving Tuesday.
We must save and preserve the jewels of our nation from the short-sightedness of greed, corruption, and pollution. Leave the world a better place for future generations, that is the golden rule.
I stand with and give thanks and support to the Chesapeake Bay Foundation.

Donating in memory of Richard Walter Meise. He was an avid crabber and fisherman of the bay. He was also the hero and grandfather to our son’s girlfriend. May family memories of time spent together on the bay carry on his light through this storm.

The Chesapeake is a treasure, it’s economic importance to the central east coast to the largest estuary in the country. I compel you to spend time on its shores, nearby tributaries, or sailing upon it, fishing and or swimming in it. It is however fragile to the affects of man and rising sea levels. Its deterioration has slowed but it has not been halted. The Bay is the tidal basin of the Susquehanna River so it’s preservation is a multi-state effort stretching from New York and Pennsylvania to Virginia and West Virginia. It’s shoreline is longer than California’s.
The future of the Bay depends upon what we do today!

I support CBF because of the important stewardship they do to protect and restore our important waterways. As a resident of Maryland, I think it's part of my responsibility to care for the bay and it's inhabitants. By donating, I feel that it helps allow for CBF to do their work in an impactful way. Plus, every time I see the bay it brings me peace, so I'd like to see it healthy. Thanks for your hard work CBF!

I lived away from Maryland and The Chesapeake for 30 years- they say “you don’t
what you’ve got ‘til it’s gone” - I missed Maryland and The Bay so badly and hope that all MARYLAND will support the CHESAPEAKE BAY FOUNDATION and the life-giving resource our beautiful bay is.

I have been hearing about the Chesapeake Bay Foundation for years but have never become a member until this year. My wife and I have enjoyed several trips to the Chesapeake Bay Area, most notably, Annapolis, St. Michael’s and the Solomons. I am impressed by this organization for all that it has done over the years. The Chesapeake Bay watershed runs through our glorious state of Pennsylvania and I felt it was time to show my pride for all that has been accomplished over the years by the foundation. I do hope this will instill other Pennsylvanians to show their appreciation as well.

I kayak & fish in parts of the Chesapeake Bay, it is a fabulous recreational resource. It's important to help maintain and preserve this resource. I want my Grandchildren & Nephews to have access to the Bay and be able to kayak & fish in the future.

An excellent organization making actual progress to restore the national treasure of the Chesapeake Bay for ALL.

When I was on a train to visit relatives in Florida I picked a conversation of a couple behind me. The husband was saying he was hoping for a warm winter. He said Pa. needs to clean up their act with water runoff to the Delaware Bay. That got me to thinking.. I need to do my part... Now I did!!!

I am grateful for CBF and what they do to save our precious ecosystem. I've lived by the bay for 40 years and have seen the wildlife and water quality improve incredibly. In 1997, the CBF education program captured my love for nature, improving our environment and protecting our Bay!

I was born in Washington DC to parents with Susquehanna roots in Pennsylvania, lived in Norfolk, lived in Southern Maryland, and now I'm back in Norfolk. I want to keep the Chesapeake Bay, a basket of bountiful seafood healthy, clean, and safe for all to enjoy.

For years we enjoyed the indescribable salty deliciousness of our plentiful local delicacy-the oyster-while it rewarded us by cleansing our most precious resource, our water. But things got out of sync and as a consequence we have been deprived of both.
But we have the opportunity to turn this around and bringing our oysters back is a twofold Victory.

When I moved to Severna Park Maryland, I was thrilled to have close access to one of the most incredible water environments in the world, the Chesapeake Bay. As I spent time on the Bay fishing, kayaking, and sailing, I saw up close its vulnerability from pollution, uncontrolled development and "take no prisoner" stripping of the Bay's resources. I felt like I had arrived
too late to enjoy the Bay at its best.

As I researched what was being done and what could be done, the organization that kept coming to the top of the list was the Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF). Not a group of "tree huggers" or extremists, but instead a group of passionate staff and volunteers who want what is best for the Cheasapeake Bay back by science not greed. Despite the fact that there are so many issues that need attention and that we all live downstream from sources that view the Bay's issues as out of sight out of mind, they still manage to balance the issues and make a difference.

As a result of my research I first became a donor to the CBF and use matching grants from my employer to leverage my small donations. As time went on and I saw the difference that the CBF has been making since I first came to the area 14th years ago, I found myself volunteering first on projects and then as a Clean Water Captain helping to educate and rally neighborhoods on the Bay and to carry the message of why preserving and improving the Chesapeake Bay is so important to everyone and not just those who live on its shores. Every time I get out on the water I see the impact the CBF is having first hand, from more fish and crabs to cleaner water with less dead spots void of aquatic life. It is especially rewarding to personally see that donating and volunteering does make a difference for this national treasure, the Chesapeake Bay. While I might donate to other charities this is the only one that I see the results of first hand, and makes me want to do more to continue the positive results!

I have worked with employees from this organization for many years. The work they do is so important and essential for Chesapeake Bay Restoration. As a result of the new federal tax laws, I found my take home pay to be slightly larger. I would rather this money go to environmental and social justice causes and have pledged to donate my tax savings each paycheck. CBF was my first organization to donate to!

The BAY is one of the MOST important areas in the US of A !!! I have donated for yrs. , CBF is VERY GOOD at what they do & I am proud to donate !! SAVE THE WHALES, OYSTERS< MENHADDEN !! ET AL !! I don't know how MOTHER NATURE supports the EARTH (humans) !!!! GOD BLESS !!! JG

We donated on behalf of the 7th grade teachers at Capitol Hill Day School as a holiday gift. The students have been working with the Foundation all school year.

Living and getting out on the Chesapeake Bay, I am up close and personal with the challenges facing this national treasure and what the CBF is doing to preserve and improve it. It is my key charitable organization and it does not disappoint! I have also signed up to be a volunteer Clear Water Captain, so I am committing both my dollars and my time to the CBF!

The Chesapeake bay is vital to our environment, economy, recreation and wildlife. Who wouldn't want to play in a clean bay? It is worth supporting the efforts to improve it.

It is heartbreaking to see the state of the Bay today, even given that it has improved slightly over the last few years. As a boy, I recall the bounty of wildlife that inhabited the water and the land around it. Crabs were plentiful. Sharks would steal the fish from your line before you could land your catch. We would fill up a rowboat with spot with just a hand line. What an amazing resource to trash. I feel terrible that my grandchildren will never experience the Bay as I did. We all need to do everything we can to salvage what is left.

I have long been a contributor to CBF. It is even more critical given the current political climate and the fact that the Bay has a long way to go before we can call it restored.

I have lived in the Bay area all of my life. I love the waterways!

My dad took us crabbing on the Chesapeake Bay when we were growing up. He had a small boat and a trot line. We would get so excited seeing a crab on the line and had great fun netting them and putting them in the boat! They sure were quick as they scooted around the boat! Dad would measure them to see if they were "keepers" and put them in a basket. Mom boiled them when we got home and we would eat them on the back porch picnic table which was covered with newspaper. Great times! Dad is gone now and as a memorial to him I became a member. The automatic withdrawal from my account each month makes me think of Dad and the great times on the Bay.

I have lived near and played in and on the Chesapeake all my life. Already, in those 60+ years, I have seen a dramatic decrease in the quality of the Bay as well as the Patuxent, Susquehanna and Chester Rivers. In order to learn more about the history of the area surrounding the Bay as well as what can be done to improve it, I have joined CBEC and become a LIFE volunteer there. I also am a board member of KIBCU, Kent Island Beach Clean Ups, which holds frequent clean ups at Terrapin Beach, Matapeake Landing, and for a second year, I will be heading up a cleanup team for the Ocean Conservancy in September. As a Leadership Society Member of MPT, I was invited to attend two panel discussions regarding the state of the Bay, the Conowingo Dam and the sediment problem resulting from it. So, it just makes sense that I also belong to and support the CBF in your efforts.

The Chesapeake Bay Foundation is leading efforts across the Bay watershed to focus attention, resources and action to properly manage this unique ecosystem for the benefit of the many, and to fight those few who attempt to use government to delay, derail and destroy the collective and individual actions that build participation in preserving, protecting and prospering from the Chesapeake Bay.

I donated to Chesapeake Bay Foundation because Clean water is the Earth's salvation. They are doing a good job of helping the earth and its current and future residents by restoring the Bay and teaching others to do so.

This group does a fantastic job in many ways: 1) fighting in courts to uphold our clean water act / bay blueprint for clean water. unbelievable that people are fighting in court to be able to pollute 2) oyster restoration, unbelievably important to rebalance the filtration system on the bay 3) education - getting kids (and adults too) on board with the science and economics of a healthy Bay

I grew up on a tributary of the Chesapeake Bay and we harvested the fin fish and shellfish of our river as an important part of our diet. There was always good food available to us. It is important that this sustainable resource be protected for generations to come. I am impressed that the Chesapeake Bay Foundation is working so hard to make this happen and I will support them in their efforts as long as I am able.

The Chesapeake Bay needs to be clean & supported for our fresh seafood. That's why crabs are scarce, smaller & extremely expensive. I'm 63 yr.old but when I was a little girl -20's always
bushels of crabs all summer long. Now I just can't afford the price for a dozen that aren't really Maryland crabs.

CBF is an outstanding organization! Their mission to protect the bay and our water resources is one that I can wholeheartedly support, and the money donated goes to programming that will have an impact on the future of water resources in MD.

We need to save our natural resources for the survival of the animals and plants who depend on them, as well as human-kind. Without these resources, we are all on the road to extinction. Our destruction of our environment is going to be felt by all. The sooner all of us step up and stop this senseless disregard for our environment, the better.

Our turn of the century farmhouse sits on a tidal river just upriver from the Chesapeake Bay.
The beautiful natural setting is a serene getaway that we share with visitors by making
the farmhouse available for vacation rentals. Our guests see bald eagles, eat oysters
and fish from the river and kayak along miles of natural shoreline.

Contributing to the Chesapeake Bay Foundation on a monthly basis is our way of giving
back to an organization dedicated to assuring that the natural bounty of the Bay and its
rivers will be available to future generations to enjoy and appreciate.

As a child I was given the opportunity to enjoy summers boating, swimming, fishing and sailing on the Bay with my grandparents and family. What a wonderful place to be! Now as an adult I feel it is my responsibility to help protect this wonderful resource and to make it better for future generations. Living in PA. in a watershed of the CB, I've followed and participated in programs provided by the Chesapeake Bay Foundation and have seen how they are trying to save this national treasure. I know it is a hard task with so much urban sprawl and agricultural road blocks, but the more people are educated the better the Bay will be and our future.

I am a licensed captain. I have a small sailing business that operates primarily on the Chesapeake Bay. The condition and quality of the Chesapeake Bay is immeasurably important to attracting clients and to my own personal recreation. The news of adding 1500 housing units to Kent Island is extremely alarming and I want to help fight that looming problem.

I recall with some sadness how John Smith and his contemporaries reported the clarity of the water and seeing the biomass of crabs moving across the bottom of the bay and its tributaries. These days, we are lucky to see a foot or below our waterlines. We may never get to THAT level of clarity again but we MUST do better than we are right now.

I am happy to help in this small way.

My husband and I were married on the Chesapeake Bay on June 14th, 2013. I arrive on boat via the bay! The wedding was almost as beautiful as the scenery. The Chesapeake Bay is very near and dear to our hearts. We decided to donate to the CBF as part of our wedding favor (along with a small shaker of Old Bay)! Thanks for all your hard work ... together we can save the bay!

I've experienced Port Isobel, and the learning experience about the bay and what one can do to preserve it is invaluable!

My SHELLFISH reasons for supporting the valuable work of the Chesapeake Bay Foundation are numerous. My reasons in order of importance to me are:
We must sustain this way of life for the waterman- we can not loose this valuable part of our heritage.
Our bay is a major part of my life and can not imagine not being able to enjoy it.
and most SHELLFISHLY-I love fish and shellfish. Eat a fish-save a steer.

I enjoyed working with the professionals in the Norfolk Office. I assisted growing oysters and planting underwater grasses in the Lynnhaven. I worked with them at various time during the mid 90's through about 2003.

I,ve been a member of CBF since 2009.I grew up in Hampton Virginia ,swimming at Buckroe Beach,I would hate to see the bay polluted and have swimming banned and all the wildlife destroyed.I want to help keep the bay clean and keep everything in balance.CBF is a great organization to be involved with.Keep up the good work!

Sustainability

BLESSINGS BLENDS is dedicated to the principles of sustaining our natural resources while developing premium products for agriculture, horticulture, landscape and home gardening needs. Our products are produced locally on the Delmarva Peninsula. Converting organic waste into beneficial products which help to improve the land and preserve water quality is part of our mission to help restore the Chesapeake and Inland Bays. We firmly support the Chesapeake Bay Foundation and their commitment to protect and restore the bay.

I enjoy CBF and think waterway cleanup of our precious resources as mandatory!

CBF does a wonderful job in keeping members in the loop as to what is going on with their actions to save the bay and make politicians aware of their actions. They are very proactive in what they do as well as getting people involved in what they are doing. I love the oyster program that they have going, I love their "Call to Arms" emails, and I love the Bay.

Have spent many years (over 15) benefiting from the immense resource known as the Chesapeake Bay. It is a universe of life that is vital to the continuing well being of all forms of life in the area. Protecting the bay, and helping to insure that it regains full health is a major interest of mine and I encourage all citizens (visitors and residents) to play a role in saving the Chesapeake Bay. In helping to save the bay you extend and enrich your own life. You can do this most effectively and efficiently by affiliating with the Chesapeake Bay Foundation. DO It today. Here is a blog article I have written about saving the bay > http://tinyurl.com/3fza7sm

I am A life long user of the Chesapeake Bay, Back Bay and the Intercoastal Waterway. I am 63 and was raised on a farm in Va. Beach on the Intercastal and have watched all three bodies of water slowly get worst and worst. Now after seeing what the CBF is doing,it's time for me to help. I know that the Chesapeake Bay needs help but so does Back Bay. So if laws are passed to help with the cleanup, then they will also apply to all bodies of water in all States. So Please, NEVER GIVE UP.
Thanks Jeremiah (Jerry) Moulton

I have volunteered with CBF for over 8 years. I have found that there are many ways to get involved and feel like you are helping the cause. During the 8 years, I have worked in the office, planted trees, worked at fairs and festivals, attended events to support our cause and tried to get elected officials interested, made phone calls and emails to my elected officials, researched, written and maintained scientific data for use in publication, and organized others to commit to maintaining local fish ladders.

My wife,Darlene, & I enrollrd in the classes not knowing what could be done but knowing something should & had to be done. The wide aspects of CBF's functions opened many ways to "give back".Both of us are retired and have the time to man the booths and work @ VIMS. Through these activities we have met many dedicted CBF people that made what we do worthwhile.Also meeting the public, as reps for CBF, and telling them about our challenges is rewording. Most people are receptive and ask about our training. We are proud to be part of CBF & thanks for the training & a chance to display what we learned.