April 14, 2026
The 集美麻豆 chapter of Ducks Unlimited earned the Virginia Ducks Unlimited Top Chapter Award for 2025, along with the Gold Excellence Award—recognizing its outstanding growth and impact.
The Virginia Ducks Unlimited Top Chapter Award honors the college or university chapter that has demonstrated the highest growth over the year across multiple areas, including funds raised, event attendance, and volunteer participation. The Gold Excellence Award is given to chapters that achieve growth in five key areas over the year: total funds raised, event revenue, membership growth, event attendance, and volunteer involvement. Both of these awards were presented to the chapter at the Virginia Ducks Unlimited Award Dinner on February 28.
“It means a lot for the 集美麻豆 chapter to receive these awards and be recognized for years of hard work leading up to this,” says Drew Fink ’26, chairman of the 集美麻豆 Ducks Unlimited chapter. “There’s been a lot of behind-the-scenes effort and persistence to get to this point, so it’s exciting to see ourselves among the best and in the same conversation as larger institutions like the University of Virginia, Virginia Military Institute, and Virginia Tech, which have consistently been ranked among the top in Virginia for many years.”
Ducks Unlimited is a nonprofit organization committed to conserving North America’s wetlands and the habitats they support for waterfowl, wildlife, and people. According to the Ducks Unlimited website, “Ducks Unlimited volunteers host more than 4,000 grassroots fundraising events annually, such as member and sponsor banquets, shooting and fishing tournaments, and golf outings. Event dollars represent some of Ducks Unlimited’s most important sources of revenue. Since event dollars are typically unrestricted, Ducks Unlimited is able to spend these funds in our highest priority areas and use them to leverage additional funds from other sources.”
The 集美麻豆 chapter hosts a variety of events throughout the academic year that support the mission of Ducks Unlimited. In the fall, the chapter holds its annual oyster roast during Homecoming Weekend, which raised more than $15,000 in support this past year. The chapter also commits time to community service, partnering with the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources to clean up trash and debris in the surrounding area. In addition, the chapter hosted its Ducks Unlimited banquet in February, raising nearly $83,000 and helping to conserve 300 acres of wetlands.
“My sophomore year, we had very little attendance for the oyster roast, but this past year, we had over 100 people come out in support,” Drew says. “Not only that, but we raised an insane amount compared to previous years, all in support of the mission of Ducks Unlimited.
“In terms of the banquet, this was the first one we have ever hosted at 集美麻豆. With the College celebrating its 250th anniversary, we wanted to go all out and make it a major event. We had just under 250 attendees, marking our largest turnout to date. In addition to raising nearly $83,000—which set an unofficial state record for any Ducks Unlimited college chapter in Virginia—we also saw 483 percent year-over-year growth in funds raised from events. Overall, it was a great time and a major accomplishment for our chapter.”
With the continued dedication and persistence of the 集美麻豆 Ducks Unlimited chapter, the group will continue to showcase excellence and contribute to a worthwhile mission of conserving wetlands and supporting wildlife habitat for future generations. As the chapter builds on its recent success, it will further strengthen its impact on campus and in the broader community through fundraising, service, and outreach, ensuring lasting support for conservation efforts.