Community Service Roundup, September 2022

CHICAGO —This month, eight retailers and one supplier gave back to their communities.

Donations included water, education grants, support for child hunger initiatives and more.

Click through to read about the efforts retailers and suppliers made this September …

Maverik Inc., Salt Lake City, Utah, expanded its pilot food waste program in alignment with Feeding America’s Hunger Action Month. The program now donates surplus food from 87 stores, supporting communities in Arizona, Nevada, Utah and Wyoming through distribution to five network member food banks.

To date, Maverik has donated 276,878 pounds of surplus food, which have provided 230,732 meals. This donation versus dumping product into a landfill equals the removal of the CO2 from 79 passenger vehicles from being driven for one year, according to the company.

Maverik plans to identify additional stores to continue expanding the program to communities in the 12 states where the company operates.

MAPCO, Franklin, Tenn., opened a new store in Antioch, Tenn., and dedicated “Fueling Our Future” pumps. For 30 days following the opening ceremony, MAPCO donated 25 cents for every gallon pumped to the Antioch High School’s athletic programs.

“At MAPCO, we are always looking for new ways to give back to the communities where we live and serve,” said Frederic Chaveyriat, CEO at MAPCO. “We are honored to celebrate this new store by giving back to local youth recreation. We invite the Antioch community to come out, enjoy MAPCO’s unparalleled customer service and quality products, and help us ‘Fuel Our Future’ through the donation pumps.”

Royal Farms, based in Baltimore, Md., donated 2,100 gallons of water to help Salvation Army of Central Maryland supply water to those impacted by the E. coli bacteria tap-water situation in West Baltimore. Approximately 4,200 gallons of water was distributed to seniors and families in the area.

“Royal Farms is pleased to help our neighbors in this time of need,” said Frank Schilling, marketing and merchandising director for the c-store chain.

Salt Lake City, Utah-based Sinclair Oil donated a portion of fuel purchases this month to Folds of Honor to support the children and spouses of fallen and disabled veterans and first responders.

The company is currently on track to raise more than $700,000 over five weeks with the support of Sinclair-branded retail partners and Sinclair Oil customers.

Stewart’s Shops, Ballston Spa, N.Y., was honored with the Father Peter Young Award by The Business Council of New York State this September.

The award is presented to a company or individual who has demonstrated a strong commitment to giving back and serving their community. Stewart’s Shops provides $9 million in product and monetary donations to 6,500 organizations annually.

“We are honored to receive the Father Peter Young Award,” said Susan Dake, president of Stewart’s Foundation. “Stewart’s Shops believes in giving back to our shops’ communities as we recognize that we are only as strong as the communities we serve.”

York, Pa.-based Rutter’s Children Charities donated $75,000 to the Crispus Attucks Association, which provides education services, human services, community development and affordable housing to the community.

The donation went toward the history and culture center building project, which will be an exhibit for local African American culture.

This is Rutter’s largest donation to date.

“Crispus Attucks is an important pillar of the York community, and we appreciate the amazing support they provide to our area” said Chris Hartman, senior director of fuels, forecourt, advertising and construction at Rutter's and president of Rutter’s Children’s Charities. “We look forward to seeing their new building and the education that it will provide to the children in York!”

Pilot Co., Knoxville, Tenn., partnered with United Through Reading, a national nonprofit that helps military families in the transportation industry stay connected with their families through reading.

As the sponsor of United Through Reading's Transportation Industry Veterans Outreach program, Pilot Co. provided assistance to extend United Through Reading's app-based program to veteran professional drivers. Using the United Through Reading app, veterans verified through ID.me can select a free book from their extensive collection, including eBooks and record themselves reading a story to their family. United Through Reading will send the family a hard copy of the book or eBook along with the recording, enabling veteran drivers to read with their children no matter the distance or time zone.

“What better way is there to stay connected to your loved ones than sharing a story,” said James Haslam II, veteran and Pilot Co. founder and chairman emeritus. “United Through Reading gives professional drivers who are veterans a platform to read and share a book with their family back home, helping relieve some of the stress of being on the road and providing a way to experience special moments together regardless of the distance.”

MFA Oil Co. Foundation, Columbia, Mo., donated $219,943 in grants to 132 nonprofit organizations during its 2022 fiscal year. The grants were distributed to 108 communities throughout a seven-state region where MFA Oil operates.

“Our vision is to empower local organizations working to make a difference in the communities where MFA Oil operates,” said James Greer, chairman of the MFA Oil Foundation. “We are proud to provide these non-profit groups with resources to address their needs.”

This year’s grants include more than $96,000 for education (schools), nearly $52,000 for human services (food banks, senior centers and more), more than $45,000 for civic endeavors (fire and police departments, libraries and more) and more than $26,000 for youth (playgrounds, youth sports and more).

The Kellogg Co., Battle Creek, Mich., and grocer Albertsons Co., Boise, Idaho, teamed up to support the issue of childhood hunger. From Kellogg’s $100,000 donation, No Kid Hungry received $50,000, which will help provide 500,000 meals. Albertsons Co.’s received $25,000 for its Nourishing Neighbors foundation, and the remaining $25,000 was donated to Albertson Co.’s new EAT program, supporting food security among children.

Also, during the month of September, Albertsons Cos. shoppers were able to donate during checkout to support Nourishing Neighbors.