Devils Backbone Brewing Co. and the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources (DWR) announced the launch of the Crandall Leadership Program, the first paid student internship program for the DWR. This program was made possible thanks to a $30,000 legacy gift from the Anheuser-Busch Foundation in memory of Devils Backbone founder and conservationist Steve Crandall to the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources.
This new internship program will provide more structure, rigor and funding to DWR’s existing internship program, and for the first time, enable internships to be paid.
“It warms my heart that the A-B Foundation wishes to carry on Steve’s legacy in conservation. Steve and I have been avid and longtime supporters of the DWR and devoted to ensuring the abundance of wildlife and good land in Virginia,” said Heidi Crandall, Steve Crandall’s wife and Devils Backbone co-founder. “The A-B Foundation’s additional funding will widen the developmental path for young adults to pursue career paths that instill leadership, commitment to conservation, and carry on the love of nature for others.”
Devil’s Backbone is owned by Anheuser-Busch, which purchased the brewpub in 2016.