Sponsored: Chick-fil-A delivers scholarships to employees
Pictured l to r: Kori Johnson, Cameron Jones, Dezmond Witherspoon, Morgan Hafenmaier, and Blake Ferrell. Each one of these Chick-fil-A Kinston employees earned scholarships recently. Submitted photo.
It all started with a mayonnaise jar.
In 1973, Chick-fil-A founder Truett Cathy set a jar on a restaurant counter in Atlanta to help an employee raise funds for college. The employee was the first in what has become Chick-fil-A’s scholarship fund, with the restaurant awarding more than 61 million dollars to about 47,000 employees across the nation.
In Kinston, 24 members have received scholarship money since the store was opened in 2010.
Pictured l to r: Dana Langley, John McPhaul and Morgan Hafenmaier. Morgan received a Chick-fil-A scholarship for this fall as a dual enrollment student at Lenoir Community College and East Carolina University. Click the photo to visit the Chick-fil-A Kinston website. Photo by William “Bud” Hardy / Neuse News
“One of the most rewarding parts of this job is being able to hire a teenager, see how they mature and be able to help them with their college education,” Chick-Fil-A of Kinston owner John McPhaul said. “It’s remarkable seeing people who have moved on to become teachers, doctors and those in the business world who started here among others.”
Among the recipients is Kori Johnson, a junior psychology major at UNC-Greensboro. Johnson said the scholarship was essential and gave her a bit of financial flexibility.
Cameron Jones
Click to connect with Chick-fil-A Kinston to learn more about the scholarships.
“It really helped take the stress off of my parents, and it allowed me to put money elsewhere,” Johnson said. “It gave me opportunities, such as being able to get an apartment this school year.”
Cameron Jones, a junior at ECU, is studying management information systems and was able to receive the scholarship twice at Chick-fil-A.
“It definitely helps me out financially,” Jones said. “At the end of the school year, whenever financial aid goes through, whatever’s left I have to pay off myself so it’s been huge for me.”
There are two different scholarships for Chick-Fil-A: a $2,500 leadership scholarship award and a $25,000 true inspiration scholarship award. Both stress a good GPA, active involvement in community service a year prior to filing for the application and a recommendation by the operator.