Victorville veteran honored as Evan Williams American-Made Hero on special edition bottle

Evan Williams Bourbon will honor Victorville veteran Brian Barber as a 2023 American-Made Hero at a bottle-signing event on Saturday.

The Marine Corps veteran will be honored at the Happy Place Craft Beer Wine & Spirits in Ventura. He is one of six veterans selected to be featured on the Evan Williams 1783 Small Batch American Hero Edition bottles.

Barber’s status of “hero” by Evans Williams comes from his nonprofit Mission FISH, which stands for “Fishing, Interacting, Sharing and Healing,” and focuses on veterans experiencing the restorative power of fishing. FISH also allows participants to develop a community, embrace the healing qualities of nature through group fishing trips, and connect and share their experiences, according to FISH officials.

The 48-year-old man said being selected as an American-Made Hero for Evan Williams is an honor.

"[Being selected] gives me the strength to continue to assist veterans, active duty, first responders, and Gold Star families by giving them a day of fishing, interacting, sharing, and healing from PTSD, anxiety, and depression," Barber said.

Since he created the nonprofit in 2015, Barber’s goal has been for veterans to never feel alone.

Generations of service

Born and raised in Oxnard, Barber was inspired by spending time with his late grandfather, Tom Barber Sr., who served as a Navy cook and had a collection of military awards and memorabilia.

Barber and his grandfather would visit the Naval base to watch the ships together and Brian would dream of following in his footsteps.

However, it wasn’t until Brian’s best friend decided to join the U.S. Marine Corps that he began to seriously consider a career in the military for himself.

Barber enlisted in the Marine Corps and served as a radio operator, ensuring constant communication between his forward officer and the artillery units at Camp Pendleton, and taking responsibility for all communications gear for his squadron and those they supported at Miramar.

After 9/11, Barber was deployed and served in the Persian Gulf, where he was part of the air refueling team, providing fuel for helicopters in remote areas.

After being honorably discharged due to a back injury, Barber knew he needed to focus on his healing, but was determined to give back and help others, which led to the creation of FISH.

Mission FISH was also the recipient of a 2023 Veteran Community Action Grant awarded by the Evan Williams American-Made Heroes Foundation Fund.

American-Made Heroes 

First established in 2020, the American-Made Heroes Foundation Fund continues the brand’s support of veteran communities, the company stated.

To date, Evan Williams has recognized 54 veteran heroes as part of its American-Made Heroes initiative and has donated $525,000 to nonprofits supporting the veteran community across the country.

“As the second-largest selling bourbon in the world, we are proud to honor the 2023 American-Made Heroes, who have served our country with courage and dedication,” said Evan Williams Bourbon Senior Brand Manager Molly Vincent. “The purpose of the foundation is not only to provide a platform for sharing their inspiring stories, but also raising public awareness for causes impacting the veteran community and supporting nonprofit organizations that help veterans and their families.”

New this year, the American Hero Edition product will now be a limited release of Evan Williams 1783 Small Batch Bourbon, with each selected veteran featured on a hangtag that adorns more than 135,000 bottles nationwide.

Evan Williams 1783 Small Batch, named for the year that Evan Williams founded Kentucky’s first distillery, is an award-winning, extra-aged small-batch Bourbon.

This year’s American Hero Edition Bourbon was selected by the 2023 Evan Williams American-Made Heroes straight from the barrels. Evan Williams 1783 Small Batch American Hero Edition is bottled at 90 proof.

The bottle signing takes place at 10:30 a.m. at Happy Place Craft Beer Wine & Spirits, 500 Los Angeles Avenue, Ventura.

To learn more about each of the 2023 American-Made Heroes and the American-Made Heroes Foundation Fund, visit american-madeheroes.com.

For more about Mission FISH, visit missionfishusa.org.

Daily Press reporter Rene Ray De La Cruz may be reached at 760-951-6227 or RDeLaCruz@VVDailyPress.com. Follow him on Twitter @DP_ReneDeLaCruz

This article originally appeared on Victorville Daily Press: Victorville veteran honored as Evan Williams American-Made Hero