I never fail to be impressed and inspired by the interest so many of our franchisees take in their local communities. Giving back is so very important—it may sound cliché, but the reason it does is because it’s true. We talk a lot about WOWing those around us, and one of the major ways in which we do this is by getting involved. By going above and beyond to make a difference.
I recently heard from Angela Nowell of our Lewisville, Texas franchise location, who told me all about the excellent, charitable uses to which her store is putting their extra fruit. Since June 2011, they’ve been donating it to a local house of worship, the Denton Bible Church in nearby Denton, Texas. The Church features an outreach program that provides dinner once a week for prisoners’ family and friends. It just so happens that one of the store employees has a son who participates in the program, and when the employee suggested they donate their extra fruit, they began providing fruit salad on a weekly basis.
“This is something that really appealed to us, so we were more than happy to help out,” Angela explained. “The response has been extremely positive, and everyone looks forward to the fruit salad every week… It has been a favorite part of the meal, especially for the little ones.”
As if that were not enough, this very same store is also involved in another program, offering up unusable fruit (pineapple rinds, banana peels, etc.) to Huffines Middle School right in Lewisville. For about a year, the students have been using these donations as compost for their school gardens, brightening up the school grounds and learning the finer points of gardening care in the process.
“This has been a very successful venture,” said Angela, who also added, “Needless to say, we have very little trash that we need to dispose of!”
Giving back to the community, and minimizing waste at the same time–talk about a WOW! Is it any wonder I’m so personally inspired by so many of our fine franchisees?
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