Wawa Thanks Veterans on Monday, November 11, with Free Hot Coffee, Ships 10,000 Care Packages to Service Members Abroad and Presents USO with Proceeds from The Wawa Foundation Customer Donation Campaign
WAWA, Pa., Nov. 08, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Wawa, Inc., today announced that this Veterans Day, the company will once again offer free any size hot coffee to veterans, active military members and their families, all day, with no military ID required. This will take place on Monday, November 11, 2024, at all 1,000+ Wawa stores throughout Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, Florida, Alabama, North Carolina and Washington DC.
"It's our annual tradition to salute service members on Veterans Day with a hot cup of coffee to thank them for everything they do to serve our communities,” said Chris Gheysens, Wawa CEO. "For the past 14 years, we've been providing service members abroad with a Taste of Home through our coffee care packages, and we are passionate about continuing this tradition for years to come.”
Operation Taste of Home care packages are an annual tradition organized by Wawa Associates and supported by the USO of Pennsylvania and Southern New Jersey, who together help send more than 10,000 care packages to our military currently deployed. This year, Wawa associates and members of the USO, Air National Guard and Army National Guard assembled more than 10,000 care packages to be sent to our military service men and women abroad. In addition, The Wawa Foundation presented a check to the USO for $1,012,305.05 from funds raised through in-store coin and scan campaigns held at every Wawa store during the summer of 2024.The funds go to programs supporting the military and their families and are distributed to the local USO chapters located throughout Wawa's operating area. Since 2012, The Wawa Foundation has raised over $13 million to support USO programs and services that help to keep service members connected to family, home and country.
Over the years, Wawa has also sent thousands of cups of coffee and care packages to our military overseas who have written to request it. Partnering with the USO to formally send care packages to deployed military members is just one of the many ways Wawa shows support and thanks for the great men and women who serve our country.
About Wawa, Inc.
Wawa, Inc., a privately held company, began in 1803 as an iron foundry in New Jersey. Toward the end of the 19th Century, owner George Wood took an interest in dairy farming and the family began a small processing plant in Wawa, PA in 1902. The milk business was a huge success, due to its quality, cleanliness and "certified” process. As home delivery of milk declined in the early 1960s, Grahame Wood, George's grandson, opened the first Wawa Food Market in 1964 in Pennsylvania as an outlet for dairy products. Today, Wawa is your all day, every day stop for freshly prepared foods, beverages, coffee, fuel services and surcharge-free ATMs. Wawa stores are located in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, Florida, Alabama, North Carolina and Washington, D.C. with nearly 1,080 locations to date. The stores offer a large fresh foodservice selection, including Wawa brands such as custom prepared hoagies, freshly-brewed coffee, hot breakfast sandwiches, hand-crafted specialty beverages, a dinner menu including burgers and pizza, an assortment of soups, sides and snacks. Forbes.com Ranks Wawa as #20 of America's Largest Private Companies, #1 in Convenience Category for America's Best Customer Service by Newsweek, one of Forbes 2023 America's Best Employers for Women and New College Grads and #1 nationally in the 2024 American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) Convenience Store Survey.
About The Wawa Foundation
The Wawa Foundation is an extension of Wawa's commitment to making the world a better place by fulfilling customers' lives every day. The Wawa Foundation is a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation founded by Wawa, Inc. to support the company's charitable giving and philanthropic activities - and ultimately to help build happier, stronger communities. The Wawa Foundation focuses its support on organizations committed to health, hunger and everyday heroes through local, regional and national grants and / or in-store fundraising, through donation boxes and point-of-purchase scan materials. Since 2014, Wawa and The Wawa Foundation have donated more than $175 million in grants to causes supporting health, hunger and everyday heroes.
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