Community Service Spotlight
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 will highlight these philanthropic efforts in this special section. Here are the latest company spotlights:
Sheetz
Joe Montana, Hulk Hogan, Barry Sanders, Steve Largent and Bill Cowher lead the list of celebrities who participated in the 14th Annual Sheetz Family Charities "For the Kidz" Golf Classic, which took place last month. The event raised an estimated $400,000, which will be used to provide Christmas presents for more than 6,200 children this holiday season in conjunction with the Salvation Army.
The annual event is a major fundraising effort for the Sheetz Family Charities and benefits "For the Kidz," the company's Christmas program for underprivileged children. Sheetz Family Charities is also supported throughout the year by Sheetz in-store donations, proceeds from Sheetz bottled water sales and other efforts.
Quick Chek
Quick Chek formed a partnership with the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA) with a fundraising goal of $50,000.
Beginning Memorial Day weekend and lasting through July 4, customers can make $1 donations to IAVA at Quick Chek checkout counters. With their donation, customers will be able to sign charitable dog tags that will be displayed in each store location. The donation will aid IAVA in continuing its mission of improving the lives of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans and their families.
Additionally, Quick Chek is launching a hiring program in conjunction with IAVA, which will allow Quick Chek to send its available Leader In Training positions to the organization's membership. When IAVA members respond, the organization will prescreen potential applicants based on Quick Chek parameters. Qualified candidates will then be connected with Quick Chek for interviewing and consideration. The Leader In Training positions are for training of store leaders.
Jiffy Mart
Jiffy Mart in Maryland embarked on its new "Cups That Count" program in an ongoing effort to contribute to the welfare of the communities in which it does business.
Each of Jiffy Mart's four location will feature a 20-oz. travel mug stamped with "The Cups That Count" logo, school logo and school colors. For each cup that is sold, $2 of that sale will be donated directly to that featured school. Customers purchasing this cup will have the added benefit of receiving their first fill free and a discounted refill price when using the cup for future fountain soda purchases.
CEFCO
CEFCO Convenience Stores donated a grand total of $475,000 to Children's Miracle Network Hospitals, West Texas A&M, UT Tyler, and Central Texas College.
CEFCO presented Children's Miracle Network Hospitals with a donation of $370,000, which is the single-largest donation in CEFCO's 13-year association with the organization.
In 1999, CEFCO began its partnership with Children's Miracle Network Hospitals with $700 raised in stores. CEFCO's 2012 fundraising total marks some exciting milestones for the organization. To date, CEFCO has raised $1,370,000 for Children's Miracle Network Hospitals and $350,000 for the various C.E. Fikes Endowed Scholarships.
Rutter's
Rutter's raised a record-setting $110,000 for local charities at the 10th annual Rutter's Children's Charity golf outing played May 7th and 8th at the Out Door Country Club in York, Pa.
The two primary beneficiaries of this year's donations will be the Easter Seals of Central Pennsylvania and the Salvation Army. The Easter Seals will use Rutter's donation to purchase a specialty equipment van to transport children with physical disabilities and developmental delays. The Salvation Army will remodel the York-area Children's Learning Center, which is a part of the after-school program. The center's upgrades will include new computers, software, books, teaching aids, desks and chairs.
National Coalition of Associations of 7-Eleven Franchisees
The National Coalition of Associations of 7-Eleven Franchisees announced that it has set a goal of raising and donating $50,000 for Susan G. Komen for the Cure during its 37th National Convention and Trade Show, which will be held July 8 – 12, 2012 in Honolulu, Hawaii, at the Hilton Hawaiian Village Waikiki Beach Resort.
During the National Convention, attendees will be able to participate in three fundraising events, the proceeds of which will be designated for Susan G. Komen. These include live and silent auctions, as well as a raffle similar to what the convention has hosted in the past, but for different charities. National Coalition leadership is currently soliciting items for each event to be auctioned and raffled.
In other news, The National Coalition of Associations of 7-Eleven Franchisees has joined with 7-Eleven, Inc. and 13 top suppliers in a nationwide fundraising initiative to support Hire Heroes USA, a non-profit organization offering transition assistance, job search assistance and job placement services to those veterans injured or disabled in Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operating Enduring Freedom, the war in Afghanistan.
Last July, at its annual convention in Las Vegas, the National Coalition presented Hire Heroes leadership with a check for $310,000 to support the organization's transition assistance workshops run at military installations. This year, the National Coalition intends to better that number during an aggressive campaign that began on May 1 and concludes on June 30.
In concert with its 5,468 franchise-owned 7-Eleven stores, the National Coalition is raising funds through sales of 39 specific products offered by brand-name companies who will donate a portion of each sale to the fundraising effort. Participating companies include Anheuser-Busch InBev, BIC, Dr Pepper Snapple Group, E. & J. Gallo Winery, The Hershey Co., Kellogg's, Kraft Foods Inc., Mars Inc., MillerCoors, Nestlé Professional, Nestlé Waters, PepsiCo, and Perfetti van Melle.
Additionally, more than $100,000 is expected to be raised through the Joe Saraceno Memorial Golf Tournament, to be held July 10, 2012 during the National Coalition's 37th Annual Convention and Trade Show in Hawaii, as well as through donations from the public accepted through the 7-Eleven corporate website.