For twenty-three years, Chattahoochee Riverkeeper has been working tirelessly to protect what was once the nation’s most polluted river. Our history of commitment to protecting one of our most valuable natural resources drives us to expand our education, volunteer and enforcement programs year after year. We envision a future where families play and swim in rivers completely free of trash, paddlers explore off limits stretches of river, and wildlife can thrive in and around lakes and tributaries. With your dedicated support, CRK will further expand its geographic reach and enhance the quality of life in our region. Will your legacy be to secure the future of our river, safeguarding it for future generations for decades to come?

Ways to Give:

One of the easiest and most common ways for you to show your support for Chattahoochee Riverkeeper is with a gift of cash.

How it Works: Cash can be used to support our work in the form of an outright gift, such as a check, or a payable on death (POD) account, in which you name a beneficiary with rights to the funds after your lifetime.

How it works: Securities and mutual funds that have increased in value and been held for more than a year are popular assets to use when making a gift to Chattahoochee Riverkeeper. Securities can be donated either as an outright gift or a transfer on death (TOD) account, a designation placed on your brokerage or investment account paid over to CRK after your lifetime.

Benefits: You can reduce or even eliminate federal capital gains taxes on the transfer, which can be as high as 20 percent. You are also entitled to a federal income tax charitable deduction based on the fair market value of the securities at the time of transfer.

How it works:

  1. Name us as primary beneficiary for a percentage or specific amount, or as the contingent beneficiary to the policy by updating your beneficiary designation form with the policy holder.
  3. You can take out a new policy and name Chattahoochee Riverkeeper as the owner and the beneficiary of the insurance contract. Whether you make on single premium payment for the policy or pay annual premiums, each payment is tax deductible as a charitable gift. 

You can leave money to Chattahoochee Riverkeeper in your will and have the flexibility to change your will in the event that life circumstances change.

How it works: You can include a simple sentence in your will to complete the gift at the amount of your choosing.

Benefits: This type of donation helps ensure that we continue protecting the Chattahoochee River, its lakes and tributaries for generations to come.

Beneficiary designation provides increased flexibility by using IRAs and retirement plans, life insurance policies, and commercial annuities.

How it works:


For a sizeable estate, a charitable remainder trust offers you tax benefits and the option for income. There are two ways to receive payments: annuity trusts and unitrusts.

How it works:

  1. The annuity trust pays you, each year, the same dollar amount you choose at the start.


  1. Your annuity trust payments stay the same regardless of the fluctuations in trust investments.
  2. The amount of your payments is re-determined annually. If the value of the trust increases, so do your payments. If the value decreases, however, so will your payments.

With a charitable lead trust, you can benefit from the tax savings that result from supporting Chattahoochee Riverkeeper without giving up the assets that you’d like your family to receive.

How it works:

  1. A charitable lead annuity trust pays a fixed amount each year to CRK and is more attractive when interest rates are low.

Personal Stories: The Kirkpatricks

L-R Mary Jane, Mary Elizabeth, Sarah and Dave Kirkpatrick

CRK board member Dave Kirkpatrick and his wife, Mary Jane, are helping build a legacy for our organization that is already serving as an inspiration for other defenders of the Chattahoochee River. In 2012, Dave and Mary Jane became a part of an elite group – The Legacy Society – by naming CRK in their will.

The Legacy Society was created to honor and recognize those who are future benefactors of our organization. Through a will, trust, or other planned gift, members of the Society ensure that CRK will always have sufficient resources to keep watch over our waters.

Together, Dave and Mary Jane Kirkpatrick hope their legacy underscores the importance of the Chattahoochee and our work as its steward. “Some folks do not fully understand the critical role that CRK plays in our present and future,” said Dave. “As Mary Jane and I sat down to contemplate our planning, we knew that we wanted to make a commitment to Chattahoochee Riverkeeper.”









Are you ready to get started? Contact Becca Klein, Development Director, at or
(404) 352-9828 ext. 19.