Double Your Donation to the Siuslaw Watershed Council Between October 1 and December 31!

The Siuslaw Watershed Council is kicking off its end-of-the-year fundraising campaign with a Matching Donations challenge to our supporters! Thanks to the generosity of two of our members, any gifts made between October 1 and December 31, 2025 will be automatically matched up to $20,000!

“Donations from the local community really help our organization’s capacity,” commented Tim Moffett, executive director of the SWC. “While much of the funding for our restoration projects comes from grants and partnerships with other organizations, the operating costs to keep the doors open aren’t covered in those grants.” Operating costs are expenses such as rent and utilities, office supplies, insurance, and accounting fees. They can also include staff salaries that are not included in restoration projects.

The Council works to restore, protect, and promote stewardship of the Siuslaw and Coastal Lakes watersheds, and support sound economic, social, and environmental uses of natural and human resources in the Siuslaw River Basin. You can learn about our major restoration projects on our website or in our quarterly newsletters. Projects implemented in 2025 include tidal marsh reconnection at haich ikt’at’uu in Cushman, floodplain reconnection at the confluence of West Fork Deadwood and Misery creeks in Deadwood, large wood placement for salmon spawning and winter rearing habitat in Pataha Creek in Walton, replacement of failed culverts to allow aquatic organism passage at Swartz Creek in Blachly, and revegetation of riparian areas of legacy farms and private properties throughout our service area.

SWC also hosts educational programming throughout the year. In 2024, field trips reached over 800 students while community events engaged 124 residents in workshops, volunteer activities, and restoration site tours. In 2025, our free summer programming brought 75 students, grades 4-8, on exploratory trips throughout the watershed, connecting them with the outdoors and introducing them to concepts of watershed-scale natural resource management. This fall also welcomed the start of recreational trail revitalization at Sweet Creek Falls in Mapleton.

Donations can be made at the Council website, www.siuslaw.org, or by mailing a check to SWC at PO Box 422, Mapleton, OR 95453. Remember, your donation helps us raise $2 for every $1 you give during our current match campaign! You can also select the option for recurring online donations to help ensure support for our programs well into the future. For any questions call our office at (541) 268-3044 or contact us by email at outreach@siuslaw.org.

There are other ways to give to SWC as well. The Legacy Giving Program offers participants a way to donate stocks to the Council. Donating in this way gives the value of that stock on the day of donation to the Council and allows a credit and income tax deduction for the value of the day it was donated. Donations can be made to the Siuslaw Watershed Council Agency Fund at Western Lane Community Foundation; at the end of each calendar year the Council receives the interest earned. SWC can also be selected as a beneficiary of your IRA distributions.

Any of these forms of donation provide critical support to help us complete our mission of stewarding the lands and waters of the Siuslaw and Coastal Lakes to benefit our communities, economy, environment, and future generations.