TravelCenters of America presented the St. Christopher Fund with a check for $84,400 on Thursday, during a ceremony at the Great American Trucking Show in Dallas.
TravelCenters, which operates TA and Petro Stopping Centers and TA Express travel stores, launched a partnership with High Noon Sales in May to sell St. Christopher Fund branded merchandise. One dollar from the sale of each item since May was donated back to SCF.
The St. Christopher Truckers Development and Relief Fund is a 501(c)(3), nonprofit organization that provides assistance to over-the-road truck drivers and their families when an illness or injury has caused the driver to be out of work and suffer financial hardship. The Fund also provides programs to benefit professional drivers and the trucking industry.
Products such as phone chargers, flashlights, hats and cups were imprinted with St. Christopher Fundโs logo and sold at participating travel stores within the TA, Petro and TA Express network over a three-month period. More than 250 travel stores in the TravelCenters network participated in the campaign.
โWe are honored to be a part of this important fundraising program for the SCF,โ TravelCenters president and COO Barry Richards said in a news release. โOur customers, both professional drivers and the motoring public, have made this campaign a success. This is truly about people taking care of other people.โ
TravelCenters has supported the St. Christopher Fund since 2010 through a variety of fundraising campaigns, helping to raise more than $2.5 million for the charity.
Donna Kennedy, executive director of the St. Christopher Fund, was at GATS to accept the check.
โIโve been thanking TravelCenters for 10 years for their immense support of the SCF and the work we do,โ Kennedy said in the news release. โNow, with their partnership with High Noon Sales, they have created another successful fundraising campaign to benefit the many drivers who so badly need our help. I just canโt say thank you enough.โ