Mama T’s Smokin’ Eats and Bent Paddle Brewing both make community causes a priority.

So when Tanya Lowney, a.k.a. Mama T, asked Bent Paddle to collaborate on a beer that can support military causes, they signed on quickly.

“You know, having people come into the taproom or people catching me out in the market and saying, ‘Hey, you helped out with an event I had, a fundraiser, and it really means a lot.’ It’s a good feeling,” Eric Welke said.

Lowney’s connection to the cause is personal.

“Well, my son is part of the 173rd Sky Brigade Special Forces Army in Italy,” she said. “I have a big military following in my family from grandpa, aunts, uncles, cousins. Any my son came up, and I thought it would be very special for him to do his own beer.”

He designed the artwork and named the beer Fist. It’s a rebranded version of Bent Paddle’s Light Lager.

“The proceeds from this specific beverage is going back to our own community, so our military community like Bong Memorial, the Auxiliary, the Legion, and also Douglas County Veterans,” Lowney said.

She’s having a release party from 5-8 Friday evening with beer sampling, a Quilts of Valor presentation to her family members, and military trivia with the Douglas County Veterans.