ShoreRivers Works For Clean Maryland Waterways

You only get one chance to make a first impression.

Three well-respected non-profit conservation organizations made a strategic decision to merge together to elevate their voice and influence on Maryland’s Eastern Shore. Their first task was to announce their new creation to the world.

Midshore Riverkeeper Conservancy, the Chester River Association and the Sassafras River Association each had a deep history of working to improve the health of the waters in their Eastern Shore communities. They sought a name and brand for the new organization that both signified its expanded focus and maintained its local connection to the waterways on the upper and middle Eastern Shore.

The legacy organizations established a steering committee to oversee the branding and worked with The Hatcher Group to put a collaborative, thoughtful process in place to select a new name and logo. After much deliberation, we reached a consensus for the new name: ShoreRivers. From there, we devised a logo that symbolizes the land and water coming together. The waves also evoke the nest of an osprey – one of the signature species of the area. The osprey in flight above the “nest” gives this action-oriented organization a sense of movement and kinetic energy.

Once the new brand was established, it was time to introduce ShoreRivers to the world. The Hatcher Group worked with ShoreRivers staff to develop a media strategy, social media plan and “run of show” for a ribbon-cutting event. Our work included rebranding the legacy organizations’ existing social media accounts, creating an email invitation to elected leaders and other dignitaries, helping to write an op-ed announcing the merger, sending out a press release to local media and a last-minute trip to a craft store to purchase theme-colored ribbon!

The public launch of ShoreRivers was a resounding success. Attendees included top officials from the governor’s administration, state and county legislative leaders, major funders and partner organizations. The Hatcher Group congratulates ShoreRivers on its successful launch, and we look forward to working together in the future to achieve the vision of healthy waterways across Maryland’s Eastern Shore.