United Way of Cullman County Executive Director Sammie Danford, Publix Manager Eric McCord and United Way of Cullman County Assistant Director Becky Goff / W.C. Mann
CULLMAN – Last Wednesday, United Way of Cullman County (UWCC) staff and representatives of its partner agencies dropped by Publix through the course of the day to express their gratitude for a recent $57,146 donation by the local branch of the grocery chain, during what the UWCC dubbed “Publix Appreciation Day.”
Said UWCC Executive Director Sammie Danford, who informed The Tribune of the amount of the donation, said, “We’re just excited that they give so much back to the community, and this is from the associates and from the Publix Charities–the corporate side. So, it’s not from your donations that you make (at a Publix store). It is strictly from the Publix associates within the company. So that’s what makes it really amazing.
“Eric (McCord, Cullman Publix store manager), when we were up here to do the campaign, he was very encouraging and supportive of us, and encouraging their associates to participate with us.”
This is the second local United Way campaign held by the Cullman Publix since the store opened its doors in October of 2015. Contributions from the 2017 campaign will benefit the UWCC’s 16 local agency partners.
“Publix and its employees have made an outstanding commitment to support United Way and Cullman County. We could not continue to meet the needs of our community without their generosity,” Danford said. “We are honored and grateful to the employees who give back to the communities they serve.”
CUW Assistant Director Becky Goff shared, “This will be the second year that they have completed a campaign, and they once again have exceeded their goal . . . Nationally, Publix supermarkets continue to exceed their goals. I think last year they raised $62 million (nationally).”
McCord told The Tribune, “From our inception, our founder Mr. George thought it was best to be involved as responsible citizens in our community–part of our mission statement. So, it’s always been our culture to donate to the communities which we operate in. Our associates are very generous, and they give to United Way, and our Publix Charities is great about matching the donation and giving to the United Way.”
The money will go into the UWCC’s general fund for distribution to the agency’s 16 partner organizations in the Cullman area.
“We’re certainly grateful for everything they do,” said Goff. “Publix is amazing here in our community.”
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