Community Service Spotlight: Enmark, Jacksons & Minit Mart

NATIONAL REPORT -- Giving back through community service efforts and charity donations is a positive force that keeps many retailers and suppliers of this industry moving ahead. On a regular basis, Convenience Store News highlights these philanthropic efforts in this special section.

Here are the latest company spotlights:

Dion Oil Co.

Dion Oil and CITGO Petroleum Corp. teamed up to support South Florida farming by sponsoring the Dade County Farm Bureau's 36th Annual Barbecue and FUNraiser. The event, held in April, raised money to support the growth of South Florida's diverse agriculture industry and help the Farm Bureau create promotions, conduct educational outreach and represent the interests of farmers at all levels of government.

Another way Dion Oil is supporting local farmers is by adding CITGO red dye diesel as a fuel option for its qualifying agricultural and commercial customers. Red dye diesel is untaxed, which makes it cheaper for use in tractors and other off-road vehicles. The addition of red dye to Dion Oil's delivery service means the entire line of CITGO lubricants and fuels will be available to local farmers and nurseries, saving them time and money.

Dion Oil operates 12 CITGO-branded stations and Quik Mart convenience stores from Key West to Naranja, Fla.

Enmark Stations Inc.

Enmark Stations is once again selling paper icons in all 59 of its retail stores in Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina in support of The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s (LLS) Light the Night Walk. The paper icons are being sold through May 31.

The icons, which can be personalized with the donor’s name, are being sold for $1 and will be displayed on surfaces inside the Enmark stations. The company has set an aggressive goal to raise $75,000 in support of LLS’ mission to cure blood cancer and help patients and their families. This is a $10,000 increase over the $65,000 it raised last year.

In addition to the paper icon sale, Enmark Stations will hold two Full-Service Fridays to raise funds for LLS. On these Full-Service Fridays, members of the Enmark management team will be pumping gas for donations.

Hess Corp.

For the second year, Hess and Belmont College in Ohio are providing scholarship opportunities to local students. The Hess Corporation Scholarship will be awarded to incoming and current students who are enrolled both full- and part-time at Belmont College.

There are multiple scholarships available, valued at up to $3,000 each. To date, the scholarship program has assisted 11 students with their studies.

Jacksons Food Stores Inc.

Jacksons is partnering with H2Good, an electrolyte-enhanced water brand, to raise fund for Boys & Girls Clubs in the communities where Jacksons Food Stores are located. The retailer will donate 25 cents to the Boys & Girls Clubs for every bottle of H2Good sold.

The money raised will support critical afterschool and summer programs for thousands of low-income youth who attend 142 Boys & Girls Clubs in Idaho, Nevada, Oregon and Washington.

In addition to the H2Good promotion, Jacksons sponsored the “Watering Hole” at the Boys & Girls Clubs of Ada County’s Wild West Auction for Kids in April. The auction is the clubs’ largest fundraising event, generating nearly a third of the clubs’ annual operating budget.

Minit Mart

Minit Mart, with store locations in Kentucky and Tennessee, raised $42,900 in donations from its customers and employees for the Muscular Dystrophy Association during its annual St. Patrick’s Day shamrock fundraising campaign. Minit Mart gave out paper shamrocks to employees and customers who made donations to put their name on and display in the stores.