Our Story & Mission

Bait • Catch • Donate is a teen-led organization where volunteer anglers spend a day on the water, removing invasive catfish from the Potomac River and Chesapeake Bay, and partnering with local food banks to turn the catch into meals for families facing food insecurity — see https://www.baitcatchdonate.com.

Our vision is a DMV where every high school student has the opportunity to spend a day on the water doing something that matters—protecting the Chesapeake Bay ecosystem in and around where they grew up and donating the catch to help ensure more families have access to healthy protein sources.

Our inaugural trip was on April 18, 2026. Leaving from Tantallon Marina in Fort Washington, Maryland, 13 volunteer anglers across 5 local schools showed up at noon, and by the end of the day we'd pulled 60 blue catfish out of the Potomac River. The captain's crew fileted everything on the spot. That same day, we transported the filets to Bread For The City, who we coordinated with in advance to accept our raw protein donation. Bread For The City then converted the 60+ lbs of raw protein into more than 240 meals for local families.

That one trip proved the concept. Now we're building Bait • Catch • Donate into a framework that any school, sports team, scout troop, or youth organization can replicate across the DMV — and eventually beyond it.

Volunteer anglers from our inaugural trip have now started extracurricular clubs for their schools on behalf of Bait • Catch • Donate, including Landon School (Bethesda, MD) and School Without Walls (Washington, DC).

With several upcoming trips for the October/November 2026 season, we are asking for donations to support our mission, put more teens on the water, and help feed our neighbors.

The Invasive Blue Catfish - "Malicious But Delicious"

Why are blue catfish so detrimental to the Chesapeake Bay watershed?

In 1974, the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources introduced blue catfish in the upper regions of the James River, with the intention of supporting recreational fishing. While it was believed blue catfish would remain in freshwater rivers, it turns out they also thrive in brackish water, and have ended up swimming through the Chesapeake and into all of its major tributaries. Along the way these invasive predators consume large amounts of species native to the Chesapeake Bay including enormous amounts of blue crabs, as well as rockfish, oysters and clams. By devouring valuable native seafood species, blue catfish have caused significant damage to the local commercial fishing industry and even outcompete native wildlife for food.

For several years now, a movement has been growing to essentially fish and eat our way out of the problem. This includes federal- and state-sponsored programming in Maryland and Virginia to increase fishing efforts, raise public awareness, and drive a pipeline for consumption in restaurants, schools and grocery stores.

For food banks, this creates a tremendous opportunity to offer a healthy protein source for those who otherwise cannot afford it. Blue catfish is rich in Omega 3 fatty acids, Vitamin D, potassium, and unsaturated fat.

And let’s not forget that blue catfish is quite delicious. While other types of catfish sometimes get a bad rap, chefs and foodies alike agree that blue catfish actually tastes and smells like striped bass. It is great for fish n’ chips, fish tacos or a fish sandwich. (And yes, it is indeed safe to eat blue catfish from the Potomac).

Bait Catch Donate is proud to be a part of the solution – one boat at a time!

Future Goals: Rest of 2026 and 2027 Blue Catfish Season

The plan is to scale from our two inaugural trips to at least ten, which would mean 5x growth (or a 400% increase) over our first season metrics, as follows:

Trip Expansion: From 2 --> 10 trips
Volunteer Anglers: From 13 --> 60 anglers
Catfish Removed: From 60 --> 300 invasive catfish removed
Donated Catfish: From 60lbs. --> 300lbs. of raw protein donated
Meals Created: From 240 --> 1,200 meals created

We are already on track to achieve these goals, with three trips planned for the rest of the 2026 season and more to come for the Spring 2027 season. In future years, we hope to double or even triple these numbers.

Your Donation Matters: Reel Work. Real Impact.

Donations to Bait • Catch • Donate are tax deductible thanks to our fiscal sponsor, the Don E. Riddle Leadership Institute. A non-profit focused on education and leadership, Bait • Catch • Donate falls within its core mission.

Every trip we lead leaves an impact on the participants, our waterways, and those experiencing food insecurity. Through your monetary donation, volunteer anglers engage in a bonding and team-building experience, learn new fishing techniques or perhaps fish for the very first time, reel in as many invasive catfish as are biting, and conclude the day by delivering the fileted catfish to a local food bank to benefit families facing food insecurity.

A fishing trip for about 5-10 anglers costs about $1000, but spending a day on the water with friends and teammates, while protecting the Chesapeake Bay ecosystem and helping feed our DMV neighbors, is priceless. Whether you'd like to be an "anchor sponsor" for an entire trip, or make a smaller but equally appreciated donation, every $1 goes to putting more teens on the water.

Thanks for your support!

Bait • Catch • Donate - Local Teen Anglers Fundraising to Remove Invasive Catfish, Restore The Chesapeake Bay Ecosystem & Fight Food Insecurity

Protect Our Waters. Feed Our Neighbors.