Hooters Presents $48,773 Donation to Holy Family School
Since its inception, Hooters Wings for the Kids program has raised over $958,000 from chicken wing sales at the Chicagoland Hooters locations including Aurora, Chicago-O'Hare, Chicago-Wells Street, Countryside, Downers Grove, Joliet, Lansing, Melrose Park, Oak Lawn, Orland Park and Schaumburg. Representatives from the Chicago area Hooters locations volunteered and presented Holy Family School with a donation of $48,773 on April 6. Holy Family School is at 3415 W. Arthington St., in Chicago.
During the entire month of February, the 11 Chicago area Hooters locations donated one-third of all chicken wing sales on Tuesdays to Holy Family School. The Hooters Wings for the Kids Program started in Chicagoland in 1992. The money raised funds tuition, technology and other school essentials for children living in under-resourced communities.
“Holy Family Ministries is very grateful to have the support of Hooters to help educate our students through the Wings for Kids initiative. With this year's campaign, we have received $958,000 to support the educational needs of our students including many classroom resources! What a joy it is to know that Hooters cares about the future by partnering with our school to help us educate students today!” said Cheryl Collins, Holy Family School CEO.
Holy Family School was established in 1985 to offer a high-quality education for minority students in Chicago's low-income neighborhoods. Holy Family provides a learning environment that nurtures intellectual, spiritual, social, emotional and physical growth for students Preschool through 8th Grade. ALL proceeds directly support the children of Holy Family, by funding scholarships and after school programs.
“We started the Wings for Kids Initiative in the Chicagoland area over 30 years ago to help raise funds to support children's education in our community. Being an active participant in our community including helping children is a priority of Hooters. This community initiative with Holy Family School helps local families offset educational expenses such as the cost of tuition, technology and other school essentials. In addition to presenting the donation, our employees enjoy the opportunity to volunteer at the school several times throughout the year,” said HMC Hospitality Group Chief Marketing Officer Denise Williams. .
“In the small town of Waverly, Iowa, in the 1960s, my friends attending the teen activities at Luther League every Sunday night included the future founder of Hooters, Ed Droste. Many years later, I called him to see if he would help our little school in the heart of the Chicago Cabrini Green housing projects, where we yearned for a better education for the children,” recalls Dr. Susan Infelt Work, CEO Emeritus of Holy Family School. “Ed said yes, and the Hooters' tradition of caring and sharing was launched”.
HMC Hospitality Group owns and operates 22 Hooters Restaurants in Tampa Bay and Chicagoland and three Hoots locations in Chicagoland. Hooters came to Chicagoland in 1991. For more information about HMC Hospitality Group please visit www.originalhooters.com or follow us at Twitter @originalhooters, Instagram @originalhooters and Facebook https://www.facebook.com/originalhooters.
To learn more about Holy Family and how you can help contact Cynthia Schmidt at cschmidt@hfm.org and/or link our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/HolyFamilyChi/.