Community Service Spotlight: BP, Parker’s & PS Food Mart
NATIONAL REPORT -- Giving back through community service efforts and charity donations is a positive force that keeps many retailers and suppliers of this industry moving ahead. On a regular basis, Convenience Store News highlights these philanthropic efforts in this special section.
Here are the latest company spotlights:
BP
BP is donating two compressed natural gas (CNG) bifuel trucks to Robbers Cave State Park in Oklahoma. The park is under the Oklahoma Tourism Department, which is in the process of diversifying its vehicle fleet. The department currently has nine CNG bifuel trucks and one hybrid electric vehicle.
BP operates seven wells at Robbers Cave that have been producing oil and natural gas since the 1980s.
The Coca-Cola Co.
As a tribute to its ad titled “Going All The Way,” The Coca-Cola Co. pledged to donate $50,000 to the Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA) Triple Play program once the ad was shared 10,000 times online. The ad has exceeded Coca-Cola’s goal with more than 40,000 online shares, to date.
The donation will be distributed to Boys & Girls Clubs across the United States where Triple Play program dollars are needed the most, including locations in Green Bay, Wis., San Juan, Puerto Rico, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Seattle, Cleveland, Boston, Sacramento, Calif., Washington, D.C. and Denver.
Over the next month, Coca-Cola and BGCA will come together in the 10 recipient cities to host community-based field day events to commemorate the donations. The Coca-Cola Co. is a founding sponsor of the BGCA Triple Play program, in partnership with WellPoint Foundation.
The Hershey Co.
Ahead of schedule, The Hershey Co. exceeded three of its key environmental sustainability goals set in 2012. The candy maker surpassed its water consumption target three years early, and its zero waste to landfill (ZWL) and recycling targets two years early.
By the end of 2013, the company had converted six of its manufacturing facilities to ZWL, surpassing its 2015 goal of five; and achieved a recycling rate of 86.6 percent, beating its 2015 goal of 85 percent. It also reduced water consumption per pound of product by 58 percent by the end of 2012, far exceeding its 2015 goal of 10 percent.
Parker's Corp.
Parker’s recently presented a $2,000 check to Bryan County Schools in Richmond Hill, Ga., as part of its Fueling the Community program. Parker’s donates 1 cent of every gallon of gas purchased at all of its convenience stores on the first Wednesday of the month to area schools through the program.
This initiative officially launched in fall 2011 and has donated money to public and private schools throughout Georgia and South Carolina.
PS Food Mart
PS Food Mart Charities launched its fifth annual “Fight Hunger Give Hope” campaign in support of local food banks. From March 3-16, 31 participating PS Food Mart stores in Michigan and Ohio are joining together with a goal to raise more than $50,000 to help local food banks feed families in need across the region.
The program encourages customers to visit their local PS Food Mart location to purchase $1 or $5 certificates, which are posted around the store as a sign of customers’ support. Each $1 donation will provide six meals, while a $5 donation will serve 30 meals to those in need.
PS Food Mart Charities, created in 2010 by Michigan-based CITGO marketer Folk Oil Co., is dedicated to fighting hunger in the communities it serves. Folk Oil owns and manages 31 PS Food Mart locations in south central Michigan and northern Ohio.