Freeman Philanthropic Services Award for Outstanding Corporation This award honors a corporation or its corporate foundation that demonstrates outstanding commitment through financial support and through encouragement and motivation of others to take leadership roles toward philanthropy and community involvement. Nominations MUST address the following criteria, and consideration will be based solely on the responses: n Description of OVERALL gift support by the nominee and general approach and philosophy to philanthropy and charitable support. (0-15 points) n For each MAJOR cause, initiative or nonprofit supported by the nominee, include description of (1) philanthropic support (money, time and other resources), (2) innovation and creativity in addressing the issue or cause, and (3) IMPACT of that support on those causes and nonprofits.(0-45 points) n Description of additional gift support and achievements accomplished through the corporation s efforts. (0-25 points) n Description of the nominee s work in encouraging and motivating others (e.g., employees, clients, customers, the public) to get involved with and/or take leadership roles in philanthropy. (0-15 points) Nominee Nominator Name and Organization of Individual Submitting Nomination Mailing Address Telephone Email Nominee Name Contact & Title Business Address Telephone Email Please attach responses to the above criteria in a summary format of no more than three pages. Enumerate each criterion and address each one separately in narrative form. I DO CERTIFY THAT ON the day of, the above named individual hereby is nominated for this AFP Award. Endorsed by: Chapter Board of Directors AFP Chapter Name Date: AFP Chapter President: Signature All nominations must be received by July 15, 2009. Email nominations to afpawards@afpnet.org. Association of Fundraising Professionals www.afpnet.org 10
FREEMAN PHILANTHROPIC SERVICES NOMINATION FOR OUTSTANDING CORPORATION AWARD Sheetz, Incorporated Altoona, Pennsylvania based Sheetz, Inc. is one of America s fastest growing familyowned and operated convenience store chains with more than $4.9 billion in revenue and more than 12,000 employees. Sheetz was established by Bob Sheetz as a single store in 1952 and has grown to operate more than 350 convenience locations throughout six states; Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Maryland, Virginia, Ohio and North Carolina. Sheetz provides an award-winning menu of Made-to-Order subs, sandwiches and salads, which are ordered through unique touch-screen order point terminals. Sheetz currently ranks 82nd on the Forbes list of largest private companies and has received awards in Ohio, North Carolina and Pennsylvania for being named among their Best Places to Work in 2008. Nearly all Sheetz convenience stores are open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Description of OVERALL gift support by the nominee and general approach and philosophy to philanthropy and charitable support. The Sheetz Corporation prefers to support many meaningful missions in order to touch as many lives as possible through the works of numerous charities. With that being said, Sheetz is committed to primarily supporting charitable missions that benefit children. Each week at the Corporate Office, senior officers review all charitable requests to determine which projects the corporation will support. Each store has a pool of discretionary money used to support local initiatives. Upon opening a new store, Sheetz makes a large donation to a local charity selected by the staff members of that particular store. For each MAJOR cause, initiative or nonprofit support by the nominee, include description of (1) philanthropic support (money, time and other resources), (2) innovation and creativity in addressing the issue or cause, and (3) IMPACT of that support on those causes and nonprofits. Although it supports many organizations, Sheetz has chosen to focus on Special Olympics and Sheetz Family Charities a charity the company established to meet various needs in the community. Sheetz Family Charities is an example of the corporation being innovative by building on an idea and meeting an important need in the community and later a six state region of the United States. SHEETZ FAMILY CHRISTMAS In 1991, an Altoona, Pennsylvania radio station asked the company to sponsor the station s annual Winter Warmth program. Donations were used to purchase winter clothing for needy area children. Sheetz made the donation, but was disappointed to learn that only 35 percent of the monies raised were actually used to purchase clothing
for the children. Sheetz store managers in the Altoona area knew many of the families who benefited from the program because they were customers, and the staff decided it could raise money together with volunteers and use 100% of the funds raised to benefit the children. In 1992, this local group of Sheetz employees raised over $10,000 through fundraisers and donations, and since then the Sheetz Corporation has expanded Sheetz Family Christmas to become Sheetz Family Charities in order to serve many more children s programs. To date, the program has raised more than $5.5 million to help more than 47,000 children across Pennsylvania, Ohio, Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland and North Carolina. The Sheetz Family Charities program has assisted many children and families in the work of other nonprofit organizations, such as the Salvation Army and the Make-A-Wish Foundation. The Salvation Army nominates the families to participate in the program. Hundreds of Sheetz employees shop for gifts for the children from wish lists submitted by parents and family members. Then those Sheetz employees coordinate large Christmas parties where the children all come and open presents like they would on Christmas morning. They eat snacks, meet Santa Clause and enjoy the day. Hundreds of Sheetz staff members and vendors and their friends and families work as volunteers that day, assisting whenever necessary. Each year the program grows. Management kicks off the program with the annual For the Kidz Golf Classic. This year was the 11th annual tournament which was held at Firestone Country Club in Akron, Ohio and featured celebrity guests of honor including John Elway, Rod Woodson, and Coaches Lou Holtz and Steve Spurrier. Most of the individual Sheetz stores participate annually in the Sheetz Family Christmas program. Stores are given an annual fundraising goal, which they attempt to meet by selling coupons and holding events such as car washes, bake sales and raffles, in addition to corporate-wide donations. This year the company came up with the innovative idea to donate.25 to the Sheetz Family Charities for every bottle of their own bottled water sold. PENNSYLVANIA SPECIAL OLYMPICS Sheetz is a proud sponsor and one of the largest single contributors to the Pennsylvania Special Olympics, having contributed over $ 2 million to Special Olympics since 1991. In addition, Sheetz employees have produced and catered thousands of lunches for Special Olympics events and actively volunteer their time to help with the summer and winter games. Sheetz received one of its highest honors when the company was inducted into the Special Olympics Pennsylvania Hall of Fame in March 2000. Employees receive paid time off to volunteer at Special Olympic events. Sheetz also sponsors the Award of Excellence for the games, presented to one athlete who demonstrates sportsmanship, courage, dedication and a positive attitude on and off the field of play.
Description of additional gift support and achievements accomplished through the corporation s efforts. MAKE-A-WISH FOUNDATION In 2005 Sheetz Family Charities began working with another organization, The Make-A- Wish Foundation. Sheetz Family charities donated $150,000 to the Make-A-Wish Foundation, making Sheetz the largest single contributor to the Greater PA and Southern WV Chapter of the Make-A-Wish Foundation. The money was used to sponsor 30 families of seriously ill children for a dream vacation to Orlando, Florida. In 2008, Sheetz donated $155,000 to the Make-A-Wish Foundation, making it possible to send another 31 families to Florida to experience the magic. AMERICAN RED CROSS Sheetz, Inc. provided nearly half a million dollars in cash for American Red Cross Hurricane Katrina Relief. The company collected $127,719.54 in donation from customers through change boxes placed at cash registers at more than 300 Sheetz locations across six states during September 2005. Sheetz kicked off the fundraising effort with a $25,000 commitment in early September. Later that month, Sheetz contributed an additional $316,000 to the fund, using money earmarked for employee gifts and events. In addition, Sheetz donated $200,000 worth of food and water to the relief efforts in Baton Rouge, LA, in early September by sending five of its Distribution Center trucks to feed thousands of residents affected by the hurricane. After the attacks on the World Trade Center, Sheetz raised $200,000 in one week for the Red Cross through customer donations and matching funds. The very first deliveries made from its newly opened Distribution Center in Claysburg, Pennsylvania were supplies donated to New York City, the Pentagon and the Shanksville crash site. At the Shanksville site, Sheetz coffee was the only coffee accepted because of security issues. In 2002 Sheetz assisted Somerset County, Pennsylvania when nine coal miners were trapped underground at the Quecreek mine. Employees at the three Somerset stores provided food and supplies to the rescue workers through the American Red Cross. MISCELLANEOUS Each store is allotted approximately $1,000 to support local community charities and organizations at its discretion. Sheetz employees play an active role in their communities by contributing to and supporting a variety of organizations including their local little league teams, high school sports teams, bands, booster clubs, proms and PTAs. Community support extends to local libraries, civic and church organizations, fire departments, law enforcement organizations and sportsmen s clubs. Stores can request larger amounts for donations as well. Local police and emergency personnel also receive free coffee while on duty. In Blair County, Pennsylvania, home to the Corporate Office, Sheetz matches the donations made by staff member to the United Way. In all other areas, Sheetz makes a corporate donation to each local United Way.
Sheetz provides food and paper products for hundreds of charitable events throughout its service areas, feeding thousands of people each year. In addition to retail goods donated to various community events, Sheetz regularly makes annual cash contributions over $1 million per year. Description of the nominee s work in encouraging and motivating others (e.g., employees, clients, customers, the public) to get involved with and/or take leadership roles in philanthropy. Sheetz encourages their customers and the public to become aware and active in the philanthropy process by setting an example of what true philanthropy is all about. The Sheetz family supports many causes throughout their service areas and most especially in the Altoona area. (The Sheetz Family Medical Building on the Penn State Altoona Campus, The Sheetz Family Center at the Altoona Area High School sports complex, Altoona Symphony, St. Vincent DePaul Food for Families Soup Kitchen to name a few) This leading by example filters down through the management team to the employees in the stores. The Sheetz Corporation encourages all of its employees to become involved in both charities Sheetz supports and in charities of their own choice. All management-training materials contain information on how to become involved in charitable activities. District managers make decisions on which charities their stores will support and store managers decide how to spend their discretionary monies. Store managers are encouraged to participate in programs like Junior Achievement and the Chambers of Commerce. The corporation pays the fees for the managers to be involved and provides paid time off to be involved. Employees who work with Special Olympics and Sheetz Family Christmas also receive paid time off to participate, as noted above. Sheetz encourages employees to participate in United Way Days of Caring and pays employees for that time away from work. During the Christmas holidays, staff from the corporate office or stores are encouraged to ring the bells in front of Wal-Mart or Sam s Club to collect donations for the Salvation Army. Sheetz is dedicated to helping kids grow up to be good people who will benefit the communities where they live and then help others. The Sheetz Family and Sheetz, Incorporated are truly servant leaders who exemplify the spirit of philanthropy and encourage philanthropy in their 300+ stores and communities.