Surfrider’s annual Membership Drive starts today!  During this annual event, running July 1 through August 31, chapters across the country compete with each other to see who can sign up the most members, with cash prizes for those in the top three (in two separate Divisions based on chapter size, so small ones aren't competing with big established ones). Can you help our Oregon chapters win the prize?

Why Become a Member?

Purchasing a Surfrider membership is one of the easiest ways to support your local chapter - growing our membership ranks helps Surfrider build our collective voice at the local, state, and federal levels. Becoming a member of your local chapter plugs you into their work, helping keep you up to date with local campaigns, programs, and stewardship opportunities. Your membership also provides critical funding for our Oregon chapters, directly supporting their work in your community.

To snag your membership, just visit your chapter’s website (find a list of the Oregon chapters here) and click the red “donate” button in the top right corner. Your membership will be good for a year! Memberships make great gifts for friends and family, too.  

Powering the Mission

You may not know that chapters are responsible for 100% of their own fundraising.  If they want to host an event, keep a program running, do educational outreach, or travel to Salem or DC to advocate for proactive policies, they are responsible for raising the funds to do so.  Your membership donation goes directly to the chapter to help cover these expenses.  Your donation helps:

• Support water quality testing at your favorite beach - each water sample runs roughly $13!  Blue Water Task Force is often one of the highest yearly expenses for coastal chapters.
• Purchase new beach cleanup equipment or replace broken buckets, pickers, gloves, and more (and the storage unit that it might take to store everything!).
• Develop or purchase engaging outreach materials so that we can grow the movement and reach more people in our communities.  This means printing brochures to hand out to potential Ocean Friendly Businesses, purchasing tabling supplies for community events, and finding ways to raise awareness around the many issues we work on.
• Rent a venue or feed volunteers.  Whenever we can, we try to find free event space, and sometimes businesses will even donate space, but oftentimes good venues cost money.  If you’ve shared a slice at Wave Watch Wednesday, or grabbed a snack at a beach cleanup, you might agree that food brings people together.  Sharing a meal is a great way to build community!
• Send activists to the Capitol.  Whether it’s in Salem or Washington DC for Coastal Recreation Hill Days, getting face time with decision-makers can be essential for passing the progressive policies that protect our coastal waters and communities.  If chapters want to send a delegation to lobby for our campaigns, they often need financial support to make it happen.

These are just a few of the ways your membership makes a difference.  Whether you’ve been a member for years or are just taking the plunge, we thank you!  The ocean is lucky to have friends like you 💙

To support your local chapter, head to your Chapter's website using the link above, then click the red Donate button in the top right corner of the screen.

Want to take the next step and get involved with Surfrider?  Check out events and volunteer opportunities here

PS: Surfrider Foundation earns 4/4 stars and 97% on Charity Navigator, which rates organizations based on sustainability, trustworthiness, and other metrics.  So you can feel good about where your hard earned dollars are going!