Community Service Roundup: 6 Ways C-Stores Are Giving Back

OAKBROOK TERRACE, Ill. -- A convenience-store chain's dedication to its community extends well beyond serving as the neighborhood hub. Whether it's via in-store campaigns or donations to local schools and organizations, c-stores are constantly giving back. Here are some recent examples, including an initiative from a well-known c-store supplier. 

Or, have a community-service announcement of your own to share? Send related news to Kristina Peters at kpeters@winsightmedia.com.

Ankeny, Iowa-based Casey’s raised more than $937,000 through its “dog tag” campaign for Hope for the Warriors. Throughout April, customers of more than 1,800 Casey’s locations could purchase a dog tag for $1. Last year’s promotion raised more than $800,000.

Cumberland Farms, Framingham, Mass., partnered up with f’real foods, the San Francisco Bay Area-based innovator of milkshakes and smoothies, to help make wishes come true for kids through Make-A-Wish. On May 20, Cumberland Farms customers could purchase a f’real milkshake or smoothie for 99 cents. For every f’real purchased, Cumberland Farms donated 25 cents to Make-A-Wish.

Savannah, Ga.-based Parker’s donated $7,500 to Bulloch County Public Schools through the company’s Fueling the Community Program. Parker’s donates a portion of the proceeds from every gallon of gas purchased at all 44 of its convenience stores on the first Wednesday of each month to community schools. The Fueling the Community program launched in 2011 and donates more than $100,000 each year to public and private schools throughout Georgia and South Carolina.

The chain also recently won a Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation Award for Excellence in Rehabilitation for its renovation of the historic Philbrick-Eastman House at 17 W. McDonough St. in Savannah. The Philbrick-Eastman House, which serves as the corporate headquarters for Parker’s, also won a Historic Savannah Foundation Preservation Award in 2015.  

Rutter’s Children’s Charities raised more than $165,000 for central Pennsylvania charities at its 14th annual golf outing, the York, Pa.-based company announced. The outing was the most successful yet and will enable Rutter’s Vote with Your Dollars and Rutter’s Rewards Schools programs to be fully funded for 2016. Since 2002, the two-day outing has raised more than $1.55 million for children’s charities.

Westlake, Ohio-based TravelCenters of America has partnered with Blue Tiger USA to benefit professional drivers through the St. Christopher Truckers Development and Relief Fund (SCF). Through Dec. 31, $10 from the sale of Blue Tiger Elite headsets sold at participating TA and Petro Stopping Centers Travel Stores will be donated to SCF. TravelCenters will donate $5 from the sale of each headset, and Blue Tiger USA will contribute an additional $5. Combined donations from the campaign are expected to reach $40,000 through the end of the year.

Duxbury, Mass.-based VERC Enterprises' Marlborough Gulf location recently received the 2016 Accommodation Award from the MetroWest Work Opportunities Coalition for its efforts to hire individuals with disabilities. Anthony Sirignano, chair of the MetroWest Work Opportunities Coalition, lauded store manager Michael Johnston for his commitment to one employee in particular who recently worked several months at the Marlborough location. Sirignano also pointed to VERC Enterprise’s pledge of ensuring that 20% of its workforce is composed of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

Jack Link's is giving heroes the experience of a lifetime with the Jack Link's aerobatic team, presented by John Klatt Airshows Inc. and in conjunction with Carry the Load, a nonprofit dedicated to restoring the true meaning of Memorial Day by honoring the heroes and the families of American military, law enforcement, firefighters and rescue personnel.

Throughout the year, Jack Link's aerobatic team will soar the skies with the Screamin' Sasquatch—a Taperwing Waco airplane carrying a jet engine with total thrust exceeding the weight of the airplane. As part of the 2016 tour, Carry the Load heroes will get the best seat in the house: shotgun in the Jack Link's Extra 300L Stunt Plane.

The partnership began in Phoenix, and the tour will continue through October. For dates, click here.