CASA PROGRAMS IN 3 STATES BENEFIT FROM PLEDGE FUNDRAISER SPONSORED BY PETE’S CORPORATION OF ERIE DURING OCTOBER
Pete’s Corporation of Erie is hosting a pledge card fundraiser and other individual planned activities by each store on behalf of Court Appointed Special Advocates for Children (CASA) during the month of October. Pete’s operates 54 convenience stores and fuel stations in Kansas, Missouri and Oklahoma and is in the 11th year of their ongoing special effort to fund increased services by CASA to abused and neglected children in the court system through no fault of their own. This year the fundraiser will benefit 6 individual CASA Programs in the region; CASA of the 31st Judicial District, CASA of the 4th, Bourbon County CASA and Tri-County CASA in Southeast Kansas; Child Advocates of Northeast Oklahoma and CASA of Jasper County in Missouri.
“Pinwheels for Prevention – Partners for Children” is an easy, stress-free and fun way to help children overcome abuse and neglect with CASA’s help. Pete’s cashiers will ask you to donate and all you do is say YES! You get to sign a Pinwheel Pledge Card and hang it in the store to commemorate your donation. It you donate $5 or more you get a raffle ticket good for a chance at winning a $25 prize in each store at the end of October. Then, the winners from each store will go on to a GRAND PRIZE DRAWING at the end of October for $250 at Pete’s Corporate Office in Parsons. Winners will be contacted by telephone, so be sure to include your number!
The funds raised are used to recruit, train, prepare, and support Volunteer Advocates who are specially trained by CASA and appointed by County Judges to help children who have been found to be in need of care by the court. The CASA Advocates partner with the children, speak up for their best interest in court and help guide them successfully through their time in foster care. Once appointed, the CASA is always there for the child until they are released from custody. CASA focuses on the needs of the children, spending less time in foster care, getting the right services to benefit them and making sure the Judge has all the information needed at Court time. Fundraising proceeds have also been used in emergencies and to pay for athletics, music lessons, summer camp, winter coats, Christmas gifts, adoption gifts, life books and special equipment and special clothing for children in the CASA programs. CASA programs are non-profit and must raise their own funds to operate. CASA Advocates are volunteers.
Pete’s Corporation has made the Pinwheel Fundraiser a competition between stores, area managers and district managers, offering corporate incentives to all employees to do their best for CASA. From there the managers and employees have gotten very creative and have taken the competition to heart! All stores do something special or host an event to supplement the fundraiser and many do some truly zany but really fun things! Several managers have taken cream pies to the face if the store reaches a set goal or offered to get dunked in a water tank for extra money; others have thrown a BBQ or pizza party when employees post so many pledge cards. There were dueling bake sales between stores in the same town; car washes that got drowned by rain but continued anyway; body painting; dance-a-thons; characters greeting customers; lotto winnings donated by employees and customers and public competition to have the most pinwheels on the wall! At the end CASA awards trophies and publicly recognizes the top 6 Pete’s Corporation Stores in several categories and representatives from each CASA program are on hand to congratulate them. A media event is planned for December 14th at the Convention Center in Parsons, KS.
Pete’s Corporation of Erie and CASA invite everyone to join the fun and help unfortunate children at the same time. Children who did nothing wrong but wound up in foster care anyway. Donations to CASA are fully tax deductable and CASA is recognized as a 501(c)(3) charity by the IRS.