CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas -- Sam J. Susser, a longtime leader of Susser Holdings Corp., which operates the Stripes convenience store chain, is recovering from a heart transplant he underwent last week, reported The Caller.
Susser, 71, now a Susser Holdings board member, is doing well and expected to recover, family members told the newspaper. He received the organ donation Tuesday after waiting more than a year, said the report.
"We know that for my father to have this second lease on life another family has experienced a tremendous loss," his son, Sam L. [image-nocss] Susser, the company's president and chief executive officer, told the paper. "We know someone has made the ultimate gift here."
The elder Susser (pictured), a past president of Susser Holdings, was diagnosed with congestive heart failure a year ago, the report said. His son said his father moved to California in January to be closer to Los Angeles-based Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute, a top-ranked hospital for heart transplants. He is recovering there and his condition will be monitored for several months before he returns to his home in Corpus Christi.
In other company news, the Texas committee of the U.S. Defense Department's Employer Support for the Guard & Reserve (ESGR) presented the Stripes chain with an "Above & Beyond" award on March 24, 2011. The award was made in recognition of Stripes' support of Guard and Reserve employees. The company will also sign an ESGR Statement of Support (SOS) affirming that support on behalf of its more than 500 store locations, the company said on Facebook.
Beginning March 7, Stripes stores in South Texas asked customers to purchase a $1 Miracle Balloon icon to raise funds for Driscoll Children's Hospital, which is a part of Children's Miracle Network Hospitals, a children's charity that raises funds for more than 170 pediatric hospitals. The fundraiser ended April 3.
The icons were attached with coupon books, providing customers an additional incentive to make the $1 purchase. Stripes stores also stocked their shelves with Monkey Juice, a new children's drink sold exclusively in Stripes stores. A portion of Monkey Juice sales will raise funds for Children's Miracle Network Hospitals. A buy-one-get-one free Monkey Juice coupon was included in the $1 coupon book.
Stripes has been a partner of Children's Miracle Network Hospitals since 1997, raising funds for children's hospitals through different fundraising campaigns. Stripes has raised more than $1.15 million during the last four years for Children's Miracle Network Hospitals. In 2010, Stripes raised $471,468.
Corpus Christi, Texas-based Susser Holdings is a third-generation, family-led business that operates more than 525 c-stores in Texas, New Mexico and Oklahoma primarily under the Stripes banner. Restaurant service is available in more than 310 of its stores, primarily under the proprietary Laredo Taco Co. brand.
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