The popular restaurant brand Chick-fil-A has announced a Multi-Million Dollar COVID-19 Community Relief Effort. This relief effort is intended to help local franchisees continue their support of those impacted by the virus.
The fund is anchored by $10.8 million that Chick-fil-A will distribute to local communities through the brand’s network of more than 1,800 independent Owner-Operators. This money will be made available to these operators through June 2020 with the goal of having an immediate impact on these communities and their needs, with food donations or items to first responders, health care workers, employees, and their families.
“Striving to be a supportive, caring, and generous neighbor is in our DNA. Our restaurant Operators give back locally in so many ways, and this time is no exception,” said Chick-fil-A Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Dan Cathy, in a press release. “I’m humbled by the incredible care our restaurant teams have shown – from offering free meals to health care workers to feeding school children in need to writing notes of encouragement for guests. They know where the need is in their local community, and our goal for this fund is to support their efforts.”
This isn’t the only effort Chick-fil-A has initiated, like the company’s Chick-fil-A Shared Table program, which was started in 2012 and currently has over 1,100 of the company’s restaurants participating in the program. This program has restaurants donate their surplus food to local shelters, soup kitchens, and charities, and it has donated more than 320,000 meals since the beginning of March 2020. Not part of this program, but more than 5,000 meals have also been donated to school systems, health care workers and other front-line workers in the company’s hometown of Atlanta, Georgia. The brand has also invested in its employees to help their educational efforts. The company will donate a total of $17 million in scholarships to 6,700 employees in 47 states and Canada this year.
“This is an unprecedented time,” Chick-fil-A said on their website. “Our communities and neighbors are feeling the increased impact of coronavirus as we all continue to take necessary actions to keep each other healthy. While our Restaurants remain open to provide a nourishing meal and what we hope is a moment of normalcy and hospitality for our Guests, we are committed to ensuring the health and well-being of our Operators, Team Members, and customers.”