Sheetz aims to make the holiday season brighter for area families

Sheetz today launched its annual December Sheetz For the Kidz donation campaign, which runs throughout the month. The in-store fundraising effort supports families that are in need of clothes, toys and other items during the holiday season, according to the company.

Customers of the convenience store chain can support children from their communities by making a donation at check-out through donation boxes or by adding donations to their purchase at the point of sale.

In 2022, customers raised $1.6 million for children in need through in-store fundraising in July and December. Those donations helped to brighten the holidays for more than 11,000 children in the six states where Sheetz operates, according to a press release.

Sheetz for the Kids was created in 1992, and to date, the charity has impacted more than 160,000 children living in the communities Sheetz serves.

In partnership with Make-A-Wish, funds raised during the campaign also sponsor wishes of children with life-threatening medical conditions. The charity sponsors one child per Sheetz operating district — this year totaling 61 children.

In addition, Sheetz also partners with Feeding America to provide food to children in need. In 2022, their $685,000 commitment served more than 1.5 million meals through backpack programs, kids cafés, school and mobile pantries and summer feeding programs.

The current Sheetz for the Kidz campaign runs through the holiday season, but there are several ways customers can support the initiative year-round, the company said, including:

• Shop on AmazonSmile or on the Amazon App and select “Sheetz For the Kidz” as the charity of choice. Amazon will donate .5% of each purchase to the charity.

• Donate loyalty points through the Sheetz app

• Donate online at https://www.sheetzforthekidz.org.

Sheetz For the Kidz was created by Sheetz store employees that wanted to do something to help local children, eventually spreading across its geographic footprint. Sheetz operates more than 700 store locations in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Virginia, Maryland, Ohio and North Carolina. While Sheetz has locations in Berks County, it does not have locations in Chester, Delaware and Montgomery counties.