ALTOONA, Pa. -- Sheetz Family Charities Inc., an employee-run charity that for the past 23 years has set out to make the holiday season brighter for children in Pennsylvania, Maryland, Ohio, West Virginia, Virginia and North Carolina, will be doing business as Sheetz for the Kidz.
The name change more accurately reflects the charity’s mission to provide support, hope, joy and happiness to children in need in the communities where the Sheetz Inc. convenience-store chain operates, the organization said.
Sheetz for the Kidz raises funds through in-store donations, bottled water sales and the annual golf classic, Prize-A-Palooza, as well as other fundraising events throughout the year. All proceeds from these events benefit the Sheetz for the Kidz Holiday Program and Make-A-Wish.
The renaming comes after a successful in-store collection campaign in December that raised more than $516,000, benefiting nearly 4,000 children in need across six states.
“Thanks to loyal Sheetz customers, we continue to make an impact in our local communities,” said executive director Sarah Piper.
In 2015, Sheetz for the Kidz raised more than $1.2 million and affecting more than 8,520 kids. Sheetz customers can get involved through in-store fundraising campaigns, donating on the website www.sheetzforthekidz.org and selecting Sheetz for the Kidz when shopping on Amazon Smile.
In store, customers can purchase Sheetz for the Kidz Water, and for a limited time only, Sheetz will offer a cookie benefiting the charity; 20 cents from every cookie sold goes to Sheetz for the Kidz.
This tradition started in 1992 when two Sheetz employees, Dan McMahon and Charlie Campbell, created a way to give children in need the opportunity to celebrate the holidays with new clothes, toys and other basic needs. In their first year, Dan and Charlie raised $12,000 providing a wonderful holiday for 126 children in Pennsylvania. The holiday program, in partnership with the Salvation Army, has grown to provide holiday experiences to children in all six states in which Sheetz operates. Sheetz for the Kidz has partnered with Make-A-Wish since 2005 to sponsor families of seriously ill children to experience a weeklong dream vacation in Orlando, Fla.; 48 families were granted their wish in 2015.
Sheetz for the Kidz is a Sheetz employee run non-profit organization, designated as a 501(c) (3) charity, independent of the Sheetz Corp. The charity has affected more than 93,500 children thanks to donations totaling more than $21.6 million.
Altoona, Pa.-based Sheetz operates more than 500 convenience stores in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Virginia, Maryland, Ohio and North Carolina.
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