Photographers Help Celebrate Beauty of Great Lakes

Budweiser, Biodiversity Project Announce Great Lakes Photo Contest Winners

ST. LOUIS (Sept. 25, 2009) – Biodiversity Project’s Great Lakes Forever program and Budweiser are pleased to announce the winners of this year’s photography contest to select the best professional and amateur photographs of the Great Lakes.

The grand prize winners in both categories will have their original photographs printed on the 2009 Great Lakes Forever/Budweiser beer coasters to be distributed to bars and restaurants in eight Great Lakes states.

This year’s grand prize winner in the professional category is “September Shoreline” by Shawn Hamer in Auburn Hills, Mich. The other finalists in this category were Mike Mikulich of Superior, Wisc. and for the second year in a row Stacy Niedzwiecki of Rockford, Mich.  In the amateur category, the grand prize winner is “Thirty Mile Point in Winter” by Gerri Jones of Wilson, N.Y. The other finalists were Marvil LaCroix of Silver Bay, Minn. and Steve Baukner of Duluth, Minn.

The contest is part of an effort to raise public awareness and to motivate the public to protect and improve the longevity of the Great Lakes by integrating environmental messages in common-place settings, like beer coasters. 

“We more than doubled the number of participating photographers in this fifth year of the photo contest,” said Jennifer Browning, director of Biodiversity Project, home of the Great Lakes Forever program.  “As Ansel Adams famously showed, photography can dramatically increase environmental awareness.  With the ever expanding popularity of this contest, we hope Great Lakes Forever, Budweiser and the amazing photographs submitted each year will continue to motivate more people to love and protect the Great Lakes.”

“Budweiser is proud to partner with the Biodiversity project to celebrate the work of these outstanding photographers and the natural beauty of the Great Lakes region,” said Bob Fishbeck, Budweiser brand manager.  “The images captured by these photographers help remind us all about the importance of protecting and preserving the Great Lakes as important resources in our country.”

In addition to printing the winning photographs on the 2009 beer coasters, the Grand Prize winners will receive Budweiser merchandise as well as recognition on the Great Lakes Forever Web site.

Great Lakes Forever is a program of Biodiversity Project, based out of Chicago, Illinois.  Since its creation in 2004, Great Lakes Forever has become a source for public education and action programs that help strengthen the movement to protect the Great Lakes.  Budweiser joined with Biodiversity Project to help sponsor initiatives and projects of Great Lakes Forever since 2005.  In addition to supporting the photo contest, Budweiser has made a $30,000 donation to Great Lakes Forever for education and awareness programs that focus on protecting water quality and conserving water.

. Based in St. Louis, Anheuser Busch is the leading American brewer, holding a 49.2 percent share of U.S. beer sales.  The company brews the world’s largest-selling beers, Budweiser and Bud Light.  Anheuser Busch also owns a 50 percent share in Grupo Modelo, Mexico’s leading brewer.  Anheuser-Busch ranked No. 1 among beverage companies in FORTUNE Magazine’s Most Admired Global Companies list in 2009.  Anheuser Busch is one of the largest theme park operators in the United States, is a manufacturer of aluminum cans and one of the world’s largest recyclers of aluminum cans.  The company is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Anheuser-Busch InBev, the leading global brewer, and continues to operate under the Anheuser-Busch name and logo.  For more information, visit www.anheuser-busch.com.

For more information on the 2009 Great Lakes Forever Photo Contest, sponsored by Great Lakes Forever and Budweiser, please visit www.greatlakesforever.org.  You may also contact Rebecca Dill, program manager of Great Lakes Forever, either by phone at 773-496-4020, or via email at rill@biodiverse.org.

*To acquire images of the winning entries, please contact Tony Paraino at 314.577.3453 or anthony.parainio@anheuser-busch.com.