Community Service Roundup, March 2021
By Hannah Hammond on Mar. 29, 2021CHICAGO — This month’s community service roundup features nine convenience-store chains and one supplier that recently donated money to charities.
Sheetz, Maverik and Stewart’s Shops were among the companies that gave back. Click through to see more...
Casey’s General Stores
Casey’s, Ankeny, Iowa, awarded $1 million in grants to local schools through its Cash for Classrooms program. The program benefits K-12 schools through 99 grants, and comes as teachers, students and families have faced a year full of challenges brought on by COVID-19, the c-store chain said.
Examples of what the grants go toward are new playground equipment, updated classroom technology, sustainable solutions and more.
Money for the grants was raised through donations from Casey’s customers during its January roundup campaign and a meal deal partnership between Casey’s and Purchase, N.Y.-based PepsiCo’s Lifewtr.
Sheetz Inc.
Sheetz Family Council Chairman Steve Sheetz and his wife Nancy Sheetz donated $2.7 million to Penn State Altoona. The couple, of the Altoona, Pa.-based c-store chain, deepened their commitment to the Sheetz Fellows Program. The program offers mentorship, special programming and financial support to Penn State Altoona students.
The Sheetz gift will also create the first fund at the campus for students facing financial emergencies and an endowment targeted to Ivyside Eats, a program that address food insecurity among Penn State Altoona students.
“Nan and I are grateful for all that this region and Penn State have done to support our success, and we are glad to help today’s and tomorrow’s students achieve their own ambitions and build careers, businesses and lives in the Altoona area,” said Steve Sheetz. “No Penn State Altoona student should go hungry or face financial hardship alone, and every Penn State Altoona student should have the opportunity to fulfill their potential for leadership. We all benefit when young people in our region earn their degrees and find their own ways to give back.”
Steve Sheetz attended Penn State Altoona campus, then known as Altoona Undergraduate Center. He has been a member of the campus’ advisory board since 1984.
The Wills Group Inc.
La Plata, Md.-based The Wills Group, parent company to c-store chain Dash In, donated $500,000 in unrestricted grants to its regional food bank and local nonprofit partners to help aid the hunger crisis through the Mid-Atlantic region amid COVID-19.
This brings the company’s philanthropic response to the coronavirus to $1 million since March 2020.
Capital Area Food Bank, Feed More, Food Bank of Delaware and Maryland Food Bank each received a $100,000 grant to support their mobile food distribution efforts and to meet an increased demand for food, The Wills Group said.
LifeStyles of Maryland received $50,000 to deliver food to remote communities, Farming 4 Hunger received $25,000 to expand food production through pop-up greenhouses and egg processing and Southern Maryland Food Bank received $25,000 to increase its food supply and distribution.
“As the pandemic has continued to exacerbate food insecurity nationwide, we have kept in close contact with our regional food bank and local nonprofit partners to understand their challenges and identify the best way to support their efforts to increase food access for kids and families in our communities,” said Lock Wills, president, CEO and chairman of the Wills Group, said in the company's 2020 Community Engagement Report. “We felt it was important to use our 2020 Community Engagement Report to echo the increased needs of our food bank partners and ask the public to join us in addressing the rising hunger crisis.”
Maverik
Maverik, Salt Lake City, Utah, customers raised $180,767 in February for Feeding America.
Throughout the month, shoppers could round up their transactions up to the nearest dollar at Maverik stores across 11 states. Maverik gave a total of $330,760 to Feeding America in 2021.
Ninety percent of customers donations raised locally stay local. Maverik’s donation will be distributed to 15 Feeding America member food banks. Money will also go toward Feeding America’s COVID-19 Response Fund, used to get food and funds to local food banks needing it most across the country.
Stewart’s Shops
Stewart’s Shops, Ballston Spa, N.Y., is donating more than $1.8 million from its Holiday Match campaign to 1,715 children’s charities.
Customers donated more than $940,000 to the program between Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day. Stewart’s Shops then matched that amount.
Since its inception in 1986, the Holiday Match program raised more than $32 million.
Huck's
Huck’s, Carmi, Ill, c-stores raised $182,041 for its Karing for Kids Program in 2020. The program, in its 18th year, was created to make Christmas special for less-fortunate children, the company said. Each child selected in the program receives $150 to fulfill their Christmas wishes.
Money is raised in stores and stays in the market where funds were raised. Local health departments and teachers help to privately select the children in need.
While the program is focused on Christmas, donations are also accepted all year long to provide money for other projects like scholarships, Special Olympics, disaster relief and more.
Speedway
Speedway, Enon, Ohio, raised $11 million for children treated at Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals across the United States in 2020.
Donations made by customers, business partners and employees throughout the year helped meet the need of 81 hospitals, the c-store chain said. The majority of funds came from a year-long canister collection and pin pad prompts at the point of sale in Speedway stores, company-wide campaign weekends and other local campaigns.
Speedway also donated 7,000 N95 masks and 3,000 surgical masks to 11 children’s hospitals located in initial COVID-19 hotspots.
Speedway raised more than $133 for Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals since their partnership began in 1991.
TravelCenters of America
TravelCenters of America, Westlake, Ohio, donated $24,960 to the St. Christopher Truckers Relief Fund (SCF) as party of a candy promotion with World’s Finest Chocolate.
People visiting TA’s travel stores in February could buy a World’s Finest Chocolate candy bar at the register with a portion of the proceeds going to SCF, a nonprofit offering financial assistance to ill or injured professional drivers and health and wellness programs.
“We’re pleased to offer this donation to the St. Christopher Trucker’s Relief Fund,” said Barry Richards, president of TA. “We’re grateful for the millions of professional drivers who are the backbone of the trucking industry and will continue doing what we can to support such an important organization.”
TA raised nearly $3 for SCF since it started supporting the fund in 2010.
Enmarket
Enmarket, Savannah, Ga., raised $160,000 for charities during its Enrich Life campaign.
The campaign involves a variety of projects and fundraisers, including the Enmarket Charity Classic, which was held on March 23 at The Landings Club. The event raised $160,000, which was divided among two local charities: The 200 Club of the Coastal Empire and Make-a-Wish Georgia.
Promotion in Motion
Snack and candy maker Promotion in Motion, Allendale, N.J., donated $100,000 to non-profit organizations fighting food insecurity across the United States and Canada. The donation was divided among 13 charities, which company associates nominated.
Charities included City harvest, Operation Homefront, Interfaith Food Pantry of the Oranges, Community FoodBank of New Jersey and more.
“This past year has been a challenging one for so many. It is more important than ever to contribute and give back,” said Michael G. Rosenberg, Promotion in Motion’s CEO. “We are proud to use the power of our organization to help support the heroes who work on the front lines every day to end food insecurity.”