WASHINGTON, MARCH 16, 2003 - The following is a statement from Heritage Foundation President Edwin Feulner on the death of Joseph Coors. The Colorado brewer made it possible for Heritage to open its doors with a $250,000 grant in 1972 to the think tank. Coors was the original funder of Heritage and subsequently earned the title of honorary trustee, founder and recipient of Heritage's highest honor-the Clare Boothe Luce award.

"Without Joe Coors, The Heritage Foundation wouldn't exist-and the conservative movement it nurtures would be immeasurably poorer. Thanks in large part to Joe, though, we can look back on a record of accomplishment that stretches back three decades.

The late Joseph Coors, left, and Heritage Foundation President Edwin Feulner.

"Joe was there when most people scoffed at the notion of launching a 'conservative think tank'-when the very idea of a Heritage Foundation appeared risky. But he believed in good ideas, risky or not, and putting them into action. Fortunately, he thought The Heritage Foundation-a think tank that would aggressively counterattack liberal thinking in Washington with solid, timely research on public policy issues-was a good idea. The rest, as they say, is history.

"Joe is gone now, no doubt having a beer with his pals who have been waiting for him in heaven. But Heritage, the idea that he nurtured 30 years ago, remains and thrives. It's now a permanent institution in Washington and the nation itself, working to make America a place where freedom, opportunity, prosperity and civil society flourish."

"May Joe Coors-my mentor and friend-rest in peace. He earned it. "