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.
The Corps Foundation is excited to share their 2025 Annual Report. Select the link to read about our accomplishments in the last year. Your membership enables the work we do and we hope you’ll continue to support us and follow our work in the years ahead. Thank you for your support! Click here for the full report.
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
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 was instrumental in developing and promoting 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 and Instagram.
Water Safety
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 supported the award-winning “Life Jackets Worn…Nobody Mourns” campaign for water safety with over $1.7 Million in grant funds from 2014-2025. Free campaign materials and resources can be found at PleaseWearIt.com.
PLEASE SUPPORT OUR WORK
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.
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.
Throwback Thursday. We received a bunch of photos from Aurora Scott including this one. Unfortunately, we don't know who this is, but we think this is a quintessential park ranger photo. If anyone can shed some light on this, we would love to know more about it.
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Throwback Thursday: Once again, we are going to feature someone who is still working as a park ranger. Chances are you have met Kevin Ewbank. If there is also a good chance that the work that he has done has improved your life. Kevin’s first summer job with the USACE was in 1982. He just surpassed 44 years on the job! Kevin advanced the interpretive field in the Corps by developing many innovative programs and serving on important initiatives including helping to establish the Advanced Interpretive Services Course. He served in the Visitor Center Manager Group that helped develop the Natural Resources Management Gateway. Kevin was among the leaders of the Water Safety Team for many years and tracked vital statistics. Kevin also played an important role as a long-term member of the Critical Incident Stress Management Team. This program helped to heal many employees after traumatic stress which, unfortunately, is too often part of a ranger's career. Kevin has also helped Park visitors and his community by being an EMT and paramedic for 35 years! Those skills are vital when working with the public as a ranger. Finally, if you know Kevin, you know he has worked tirelessly with Special Olympics along with his wife and daughter. This impressive list and more tells you a little about Kevin. When we discussed featuring him, he modestly said, “It has been a good ride so far.” On behalf of the Corps Foundation, thank you for all you have done and continue to accomplish.
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Throwback Thursday: If you've worked for the Corps of Engineers for a while, you have either met or you have heard of Debby Chenoweth. Here she is in her younger days. Debby accomplished many things during her career such as becoming the first woman and first non-engineer OPM of a hydropower and navigation project at Bonneville lock and Dam. She was deeply involved in training park rangers and leading the way for women who followed behind her. She retired as Chief of Operations for the Portland District. After retirement, she served on the Board of Directors for the Corps Foundation. She also was honored by inclusion by Recreation.gov in Important Women in Conservation History. If you are a woman working in the natural resources section of the USACE you should give some credit to Debby for helping to pave the way for you. You can see her interview with Peter B. Lewis in the Park Ranger Stories book.
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Please join us in recognizing volunteer Barbara Taylor who has been awarded the Volunteer Excellence Coin by USACE Staff at John H. Kerr Reservoir. The Barbara Taylor first became a volunteer with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers at John H. Kerr Reservoir in 2019 and again 2020- 2025. Barbara’s versatile skills were used to staff as day use and campground gatehouses- assisting visitors, promoting water safety, selling passes and more.
In 2025 Barbara returned to volunteer at Kerr Reservoir to staff the Joseph SJ Tanner II Environmental Education Center every weekend of the recreation season, which involves assisting the public, leading interactive activities, and educating visitors about Kerr Reservoir. She then expanded her role as a volunteer to assist the Shoreline Program and team at Kerr Reservoir. Quickly learning the shoreline program and the Shoreline Management System (SLM), Barbara began processing shoreline permit renewal paperwork and going through nearly 5000 permits scanning historical documentation into the SLM system.
Today, Barbara continues to staff the Education Center for the 2026 recreation season, while also processing shoreline permit renewal paperwork and working with permit documentation. Her work from 2025 through today has allowed Kerr Reservoir to continue serving the public and customers in a timely and efficient manner. Barbara’s dedication to volunteer service at John H. Kerr Reservoir makes her an invaluable member of our team.
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Throwback Thursday. This picture shows part of the Clear Springs Nature Trail at Sardis Lake, Mississippi.
In his book, "Paid in Sunsets", Dave Dutton wrote a hilarious story called "Not Another Dang Snake Story." Part of the story takes place on this trail. If you haven't read Dave's book, we recommend it. The title, of course, comes from the fact that park rangers are paid in sunsets- not necessarily money, or at least not enough money. One of Dave's other accomplishments was that he was the first person to win the Hiram M. Chittenden Award for Interpretive Excellence. If you want to read the snake story, either look in the Park Ranger Stories book or get a copy of Dave's book.
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