Fans can pick up a pack of Coors Banquet to protect America’s firefighters to support donations for the Wildland Firefighter Foundation. Chart-topping country music star Chase Rice joins “Protect Our Protectors” program for second year
Golden, Colo., Aug. 7, 2023 – Coors Banquet, the beer proudly born and brewed in the heart of wildfire country since 1873, is supporting America’s firefighters for the ninth consecutive year with its national Protect Our Protectors program. In recent years, there has been an overwhelming increase in devastating and destructive wildfires across North America. The toll from wildfires has caused a considerable staffing shortage among wildland firefighters, hotshot crews, and elite teams. This spring, the U.S. Forest Service even reported staffing levels as low as 66%.
Coors Banquet is devoted to continuing its longstanding commitment to protecting firefighters with the Protect Our Protectors initiative, which will provide $250K for the Wildland Firefighter Foundation in 2023 in addition to other firefighter charities across the country. Coors Banquet has donated more than $2 million to this cause since the program began and as the U.S. enters peak wildfire season — while Canada continues to experience an ongoing, record-setting series of wildfires that are impacting air quality across America — it is more important than ever to support firefighters.
Every purchase of Coors Banquet helps support the brand’s donation to the Wildland Firefighter Foundation. “It’s incredibly important to support firefighters, the brave few who run towards the fire,” said Marcelo Pascoa, vice president of marketing for the Coors Family of Brands. “As a brand that’s committed to doing what’s right, even when it’s hard, Coors Banquet supports those who personify this principle and do so much to protect our people and our land.”
Protect Our Protectors will be visible across many of the brand’s marketing channels this year, from media partnerships to local events, and celebrity integrations. Coors Banquet is fighting fire with fire through a noteworthy media partnership with the hit show Hot Ones. Upcoming content from the Complex series, which features A-list celebrities being interviewed while eating hot wings, will shine a light on this important cause starting Sept. 14.
Coors Banquet fan Chase Rice is also joining the Protect Our Protectors initiative for the second year, having spent a day training and working with firefighters in Idaho last summer.
“People would be surprised at just how quick these fires take hold,” Rice said of the experience.“ I always thought, if there’s a fire, just go in a different direction or find a different part of the woods, but the reality is the fires take hold so quickly, and it gets so dangerous in just minutes. They can take out an entire mountain range or national park.”
As part of the 2023 initiative, Rice will bring Protect Our Protectors to music devotees across the nation while touring, also engaging with firefighters in areas near his upcoming concerts and making visits to fire stations.
“The Wildland Firefighter Foundation is honored to receive abundant support from Coors Banquet. It’s amazing for wildland firefighters to see the recognition and awareness this program creates, and the true difference it makes in ensuring our firefighters have supplies, physical and mental health support, and more,” said Burk Minor, executive director of the Wildland Firefighter Foundation. “Thanks to our relationship with Coors Banquet, the WFF is able to provide even stronger support for firefighters and their families.”
To get involved, donate and learn more about how you can support wildland firefighters, visit www.protectourprotectors.com.
About Molson Coors Beverage Company
For more than two centuries, Molson Coors has been brewing beverages that unite people for all of life’s moments. From Coors Light, Miller Lite, Molson Trademark, Carling, and Staropramen to Coors Banquet, Blue Moon Belgian White, Leinenkugel’s Summer Shandy, Vizzy Hard Seltzer, Topo Chico Hard Seltzer, Simply Spiked Lemonade, Creemore Springs and more, Molson Coors produces some of the most beloved and iconic beer brands ever made. While the company’s history is rooted in beer, Molson Coors offers a modern portfolio that expands beyond the beer aisle with sparkling cocktails, canned wine, kombucha, cider and more.
Molson Coors Beverage Company is a publicly traded company that operates through Molson Coors North America and Molson Coors Europe, and is traded on the New York and Canadian Stock Exchange (TAP). The company’s commitment to raising industry standards and leaving a positive imprint on our employees, consumers, communities and the environment is reflected in Our Beer Print and our 2025 sustainability targets. To learn more about Molson Coors Beverage Company, visit molsoncoors.com.
