RICHMOND, Va. (Nov. 21, 2011) – Hardee’s restaurants operated by Boddie-Noell Enterprises recently raised more than $55,000 for Special Olympics Virginia. The annual Buy a Star, Be a Fan fundraiser invited Virginia Hardee’s customers to purchase stars for $1in exchange for a coupon booklet and ran from Oct. 11 through Nov. 11.
All the money raised from the sale of the stars went to Special Olympics Virginia to help more than 1,000 Special Olympics athletes participate in the 2012 Summer Games.
Boddie-Noell Enterprises, the largest Hardee’s franchise operator in the United States, has been partners with Special Olympics Virginia for more than 30 years, contributing more than $1 million to the organization over that time.
Boddie-Noell owns and operates close to 200 Hardee’s restaurants across Virginia. Boddie-Noell and Hardee’s also partner in Special Olympics Virginia’s Training for Life program by employing persons with intellectual disabilities, some of whom are Special Olympics athletes, and providing a welcome workplace environment that breeds success.
“We’re excited to be sending over 360 Special Olympics athletes to the 2012 Summer Games with the money raised in this year’s Buy a Star, Be a Fan fundraiser,” said Jerry Allsbrook, chief marketing officer for Boddie-Noell Enterprises and board member for Special Olympics Virginia. “We appreciate the efforts of our loyal guests and restaurant teams that made this possible.”
In addition to the Buy a Star, Be a Fan fundraiser, Boddie-Noell also showed its support of Special Olympics Virginia by sponsoring Over the Edge, a rapelling event held at the SunTrust Center in downtown Richmond. Boddie-Noell’s Bill Boddie Jr. rappelled 400 feet down the 25-story building with the Hardee’s Happy Star along for the ride. Participants had to raise $1,000 for the ‘privilege’ of rappelling.
The mission of Special Olympics is to provide year-round sports training and athletic competition in a variety of Olympic-type sports for children and adults with intellectual disabilities. It provides them with continuing opportunities to develop physical fitness, demonstrate courage, experience joy and participate in a sharing of gifts, skills and friendship with their families, other Special Olympics athletes and the community.
To learn more about the Special Olympics Virginia please visit www.specialolympicsva.org.
About Special Olympics Virginia
Special Olympics is a year-round international program of sports training and athletic competition for children and adults with intellectual disabilities, giving them continuing opportunities to develop physical fitness, demonstrate courage, experience joy and participate in the sharing of gifts, skills and friendship with their families, other Special Olympics athletes and the community. By using sport as a vehicle for social change, Special Olympics Virginia strives to create opportunities for meaningful interaction and self discovery for everyone. The organization’s goal is to open the heart and mind of every Virginian to the value and ability of persons with intellectual disabilities. Special Olympics Virginia Inc. is the state program of Special Olympics Incorporated.
About Boddie-Noell Enterprises
Boddie-Noell Enterprises (BNE) has been a Hardee’s franchise operator continuously for 49 years. BNE is the largest Hardee’s franchise operator in the United States with 335 restaurants across four states (North Carolina, Virginia, Kentucky and South Carolina). The company employs more than 12,000 people and is headquartered in Rocky Mount, N.C. For more information about the company, visit www.bneinc.com.
About Hardee’s
Celebrating 50 years in the quick-service industry, Hardee’s Food Systems is a wholly owned subsidiary of CKE Restaurants, Inc. of Carpinteria, Calif. As of the end of Q1 fiscal 2012, CKE, through its subsidiaries, had a total of 3,182 franchised, licensed or company-operated restaurants in 42 states and in 20 countries, including 1,262 Carl’s Jr.® restaurants and 1,909 Hardee’s restaurants. For more information, or to find a Hardee’s near you, go to www.hardees.com. Hardee’s social media sites include www.facebook.com/hardees, www.twitter.com/hardees and www.youtube.com/hardees.
