Get Involved
Join Our River Community
Every person who steps onto the Missouri River with us for the first time has a moment when something shifts. Maybe it's realizing the "dangerous" river is actually beautiful. Maybe it's the satisfaction of hauling a tire from the bank alongside neighbors you've never met. Maybe it's watching a kid touch river water for the first time and experience wonder.
That moment is why we do this work. And it's exactly what you'll experience when you join our community of people who believe the Missouri River belongs to all of us, and that taking care of it means taking care of each other.
River Cleanups
Our cleanups are more than just picking up trash. They're about discovering that the Missouri River is worth celebrating, not fearing. You'll work alongside neighbors from all over Missouri, learn to read the river's moods, and go home with stories that make great dinner table conversation.
Every cleanup is different, but they all share something powerful: the moment when strangers become friends while hauling refrigerators from riverbanks and sharing snacks on boat rides back to headquarters.
We provide everything: boats, tools, lunch, lifejackets, and unforgettable experiences!
Browse upcoming cleanups and choose your adventure
Register online (required for safety and planning)
Show up ready to work, laugh, and get muddy
MR340 Race Volunteering
Help Make Magic Happen
The Missouri American Water MR340 is the world's longest continuous river race, and it takes an entire community to pull it off. Our volunteers are the reason 500+ paddlers can safely attempt this epic 340-mile journey from Kansas City to St. Charles.
You'll be part of checkpoint teams that become lifelines for exhausted paddlers, boat crews that provide safety support, and the logistical army that makes the impossible look effortless. Fair warning: race volunteers become addicted to the energy, camaraderie, and the incredible stories that come from supporting something this audacious.
Education Programs
Help Kids Fall in Love with the River
There's nothing quite like watching a fourth-grader realize the Missouri River isn't scary—it's magnificent. Our education programs introduce thousands of young people to the river through hands-on learning that can't happen in a classroom.
As an education volunteer, you might help kids identify river creatures, teach them to safely step into a canoe, or watch their faces light up when they spot their first great blue heron. These programs happen during school days and need people who can share weekday availability.
Get involved: Email Kristen at kristen@riverrelief.org to learn about opportunities.
Bring Your Crew
Everything's Better with Friends
Some of our best cleanups happen when entire groups decide to tackle the Missouri River together. Scout troops, church groups, workplace teams, friend circles—they all discover that shared river work creates bonds that last long after the mud washes off.
We can keep groups together (our boats hold about 10 people each) or split larger groups between sites, which just means more stories to compare afterward. The energy of a motivated group working together often inspires other volunteers and creates the kind of cleanup day people remember for years.
Corporate Groups:
We can design custom employee service days that fit your team's needs and schedule
Youth Groups:
At least 1 chaperone for every 8 children is advised. Every participant under 18 must have their parent/guardian sign an online waiver on their behalf before attending. Program coordinators provide these waivers to you prior to the event day.
Large Groups:
Contact alyssa@riverrelief.org to coordinate the best experience
Support Behind the Scenes
The Magic Makers
Every river adventure we create needs food, supplies, transportation, and countless details that make experiences seamless and safe. If you're someone who prefers supporting the mission from dry land, we need you too.
Contact us at riverrelief@riverrelief.org or 573.443.0292 to explore how your skills, connections, or resources can strengthen our river community.
Want to organize your own cleanup? We can help with advice, partnership, or point you to our Big River Clean-up Manual to get started.
Donations:
We always appreciate in-kind donations for our programs like cleanup tools, food, and equipment.
Event partnerships:
Help with pre-planning or day-of coordination in your community
Local Connections:
Introduce us to your networks in river communities we visit
Financial Support
Invest in River Transformation
Every cleanup, every child who touches river water for the first time, every family that discovers the Missouri River is a place for adventures—it all happens because people like you invest in connecting communities to their river.
Your financial support makes it possible for us to provide free boat rides, safety equipment, tools, lunch, and expert guidance to anyone who wants to experience the Missouri River firsthand. It's how we turn "I've always been afraid of that river" into "I can't wait to bring my grandkids here."
Explore the many ways to give and help us keep growing the community of people who see the Missouri River as a place of wonder, not worry.