DUBLIN, Ohio -- June 20, 2007 -- A helping hand - that’s what Wendy’s® customers provided to children awaiting adoption when they reached out last weekend for a Frosty™.
Wendy’s and the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption® announced today that the first Father’s Day Frosty Weekend met it’s fund-raising goal and generated at least $1 million to support the cause of foster care adoption.
Wendy’s is donating 50 cents from the sale of every Frosty product sold in participating U.S. restaurants June 16 and 17. Canadian Wendy’s restaurants are contributing $1.
It will be several weeks before a final tally is known from the entire Wendy’s system; but, based on average Frosty sales at Company-owned restaurants during the weekend, the total will exceed $1 million.
“We’re delighted with the positive response from our customers and the many communities we call home. It was a simple, easy way all of us in the Wendy’s family could help the more than 150,000 children in North America who are waiting for permanent, loving families of their own,” said Wendy’s Chief Executive Officer and President Kerrii Anderson, who serves on the board of the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption.
The money will be used to support the Foundation and its signature program: Wendy’s Wonderful Kids (WWK). This program is filling a critical gap by funding and supporting full-time adoption recruiters at local agencies in all 50 states and the District of Columbia to match prospective parents with waiting foster care children.
In three years, WWK has grown from seven pilot cities in April 2004, to 88 cities across North America with 106 adoption recruiters.
The success of WWK is due to the ongoing partnership between the Foundation, the Wendy’s system and local adoption partners. The Foundation grants funds to qualified adoption organizations, and holds the agencies accountable for achieving agreed-upon results. The Wendy’s system raises funds to pay the costs of the local WWK programs.
Currently, children who are eligible for adoption spend an average of five years in the U.S. foster care system waiting for adoption. The average age of these children is nine years old, and many never find permanent homes.
“We believe Wendy’s Wonderful Kids is providing a vital and realistic solution. Through the support of the Wendy’s system and the generosity of people throughout North America during Father’s Day weekend, more children will be helped and more lives changed forever,” said Rita Soronen, executive director, Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption. “We are deeply and profoundly grateful.”
The Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption
The Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption is a non-profit 501(c)3 public charity dedicated to dramatically increasing the adoptions of the more than 140,000 children in North America’s foster care systems ready to be adopted. Created by Wendy’s founder Dave Thomas who was adopted as a child, the Foundation leads programs such as Wendy’s Wonderful Kids, which puts adoption recruiters in all 50 states and Canada to find permanent, loving families for children in the foster care system, and Adoption-Friendly Workplace, which encourages employers to offer adoption benefits to their employees. The Foundation also works with adoption advocates and officials to streamline the adoption process and make adoption more affordable for families. As the only Foundation dedicated exclusively to foster care adoption, we are driven by Dave’s simple value: Do what’s best for the child. To learn more about the Foundation’s work, please visit www.DaveThomasFoundationforAdoption.org.
Wendy’s International Inc. Overview
Wendy's International, Inc. (NYSE:WEN) is one of the world's largest and most successful restaurant operating and franchising companies. More information about the Company is available at www.wendys-invest.com.
