Defender Service Awards Return

The Defender Service Awards, which gave a Defender 110 to seven non-profit community organizations in 2021, is back this year. With some tweaks, and some new big-name corporate partners, the program aims to make an even bigger impact on communities.

This year, the giveaway vehicle will be the new extended-length Defender 130, which has extra space for all the things community organizations need to carry around to do their jobs. There are also several brand partnerships this time, as well as cash prizes for both the winner of the Defender and the finalists in each category. Canadian organizations are also eligible for the first time.

Land Rover has partnered with Chase as a presenting sponsor, along with five category sponsors: Outside Interactive (Environmental and Conservation), software company ei3 (Community Service), dog and cat toy company KONG (Animal Welfare), ad agency dentsu X (Veterans Outreach), and storage case maker Pelican (Search and Rescue).

In addition to winning the trucks this year, the winners will receive $25,000 to further their organization’s efforts. The finalists in each category will each take home $5,000 checks for the same purpose.

There are five categories this year:

• Animal Welfare: community pounds and shelters, animal rescue groups, and veterinary groups
• Community Services: volunteering, after-school programs, and inclusion
• Environmental and Conservation: land conservation, air quality monitoring, environmental maintenance
• Veterans Outreach: training, support, security, housing
• Search and Rescue: remote areas, mountainous terrain, rescue, devastation

Like last year, nominations are made as three-minute videos presenting the case for the applying organization. Entries can be submitted until September 7, 2022, and then a panel of judges will pick finalists to vote for at LandRoverUSA.com or LandRover.ca. Winners will be announced on December 1, 2022.

It’s exciting to see this program return. Originally devised to recognize the role of community groups in the wave of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Defender Service Awards seem to have become A Thing that will hopefully become a tradition at Land Rover. Having attended one of the handovers last year, it was incredibly moving to see the positivity and excitement when an organization takes home one of these trucks – often filling a major gap in their organization.