LAFAYETTE, La. (KLFY) -- A luncheon meant to celebrate a year of conservation quickly turned into a major milestone for Ducks Unlimited.

More than 200 donors, volunteers, and conservation leaders gathered Friday at the City Club of River Ranch in Lafayette, expecting to reflect on the nonprofit’s progress. But midway through the program, Cox Communications announced a $2.5 million surprise investment to support coastal restoration in Louisiana and Texas.

“We're here to announce a special grant from the James M. Cox Foundation to Ducks Unlimited—$2.5 million to protect and preserve our wetlands in Louisiana,” said Erin Monroe, Cox Communications Market Vice President for Greater Louisiana.

The grant, made through Cox’s charitable foundation, aims to restore vulnerable coastal habitat, many of which have been severely impacted by erosion, land loss, and storms. Officials like Tyler Bosworth, Secretary of the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries said the funding will go directly toward projects like marsh building, terracing, and barrier creation.

“This money is going to go towards coastal restoration and coastal projects in the Louisiana coastal zone where waterfowl habitat is critical,” Bosworth said. “It allows us to put more terracing projects and more dirt on the landscape.”

The gift builds on a longstanding partnership between Cox Communications and Ducks Unlimited.

“With this additional $2.5 million, we're able to leverage significant additional resources to put on the landscape,” said Richard Smith, Ducks Unlimited’s Chief Development Officer. “So it benefits the people, the communities. The restoration that we have is just tremendous across this landscape.”

That restoration work includes years of wetland protection across Louisiana, thanks in part to previous donations from Cox. Projects have included marsh-building initiatives, vegetative buffers, and storm-resilient coastal structures.

“We're building, like I said, a lot of marsh and wetlands throughout Louisiana,” said Jay Owen, a Ducks Unlimited national board member. “But it helps so much of the recreational fishermen, the oystermen, shrimpers…so it benefits everybody down here.”

For Monroe and her team at Cox, the motivation is deeply rooted in protecting Louisiana’s identity and future.

“It's all about thinking about the experiences we have right now, protecting that land for future generations...to make sure our kids, our grandkids can see the beauty in the landscape of Louisiana,” Monroe said.

Ducks Unlimited officials said the scale of the donation will help fast-track new projects in some of the Gulf Coast’s most at-risk ecosystems.

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