Expanding Education and Clean-Ups on the Missouri River

“The Hulston Family Foundation has provided funding crucial to helping us purchase equipment, and support programs and staff that would be very difficult to fund in other ways. The family members have also come to our events, helping as volunteers and sharing their passion for the river with us. It is a very special relationship with a very special family. When we look at the impressive list of organizations they support, we are very proud of the trust they have given to us to use their funds wisely and to accomplish important work on the Missouri River.”

Steve Schnarr, Executive Director

Wrapping up their 19th year of service, the Missouri River Relief (MRR) has been dedicated to connecting people to the Missouri River through hands-on river clean-ups, education events and stewardship activities since 2001. Their mission is to engage individuals and communities along the Missouri River in the exploration, enjoyment, restoration and care of the beautiful river.

In 2018, MRR was awarded a grant from the Hulston Family Foundation to fund the purchase of a large passenger boat.

This new boat has double the capacity of passengers for MRR and provides a more stable and comfortable ride for river lovers of all ages. They even named the boat Lucia, after a Missouri River loving Hulston family member who passed away several years ago.

The grant provided the seed money to purchase the boat, allowing them to utilize other reimbursable grants to cover those costs. This freed up the original grant investment to support our education, river clean-up and recreation programs all along the Missouri River statewide.

In 2019, this boat helped MRR get 1,149 volunteers on the river to remove 20 tons of trash from the Missouri River floodplain. Participants in Missouri River Relief programs in 2019 spent 10,867 hours on the river. The Lucia boat was a major part of making this happen.