The 81 member nonprofits of Community Shares of Wisconsin are working on the issues you care about most including civil liberties, sustainability, LGBTQ+ rights, voting rights, healthy food and farms, criminal justice reform, affordable housing, and diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Each month Community Shares of Wisconsin presents the Backyard Hero Award to organizations and people making change happen in our community.

This month’s hero is Griffin Schumacher, a volunteer for River Alliance of Wisconsin. Griffin is a recent graduate of Middleton High School who turned his love of paddling into meaningful environmental advocacy. Since 2022, he has raised nearly $10,000 for River Alliance of Wisconsin through his Instagram account (@griffinonthewater), where he documents his trips on Wisconsin waterways and promotes the protection of local water resources. In 2025 alone, he paddled 40 miles and raised more than $4,000. As Griffin explains, “I am using my platform to educate my peers about why Wisconsin rivers are so important to the environment, our health, and our culture.” Thank you, Griffin!

For more than 30 years, River Alliance of Wisconsin has worked to empower people to protect and restore water in three big ways: local watershed group support, lobbying for clean water protection laws, and leading a vision for a better water protection system.

Learn more about Community Shares of Wisconsin.

The Backyard Hero Awards are sponsored by 105.5 Triple M, Isthmus, and Budget Signs.