The International Franchise Association's (IFA) Franchise Education & Research Foundation announced it has launched a National Registry to profile franchise businesses and their charitable activities nationwide, as part of the organization's Franchising Gives Back program.
To date, the registry features profiles for more than 230 IFA members showcasing the efforts of nearly 226,000 volunteers who have donated more than $120.5 million and 1.7 million hours to non-profit organizations throughout the country.
The Franchising Gives Back National Registry recognizes the charitable work being done by thousands of franchise businesses, their suppliers, and franchisors from supporting Little League baseball teams, to donating food for homeless shelters, to organizing marches for cancer research.
Members of the IFA can register and create a profile for their organization by visiting the website, where they can submit details about their charitable activities—including hours volunteered and money donated—as well as upcoming events, news and blog posts.
Established by a generous donation from Roark Capital Group, Franchising Gives Back salutes the best, most innovative community leaders and charitable programs nationwide.
"We are thrilled to support Franchising Gives Back. The economic footprint of franchising is very big providing millions of jobs and economic output, but the social footprint is equally powerful, touching the lives of our neighbors in thousands of communities," says Steve Romaniello, CFE, managing director, Roark Capital Group.
"We are excited to announce the launch of the National Registry, a valuable tool that highlights all of the hard work our members do to give back, and encourage all members who have not yet registered their charitable programs to get involved today," says Doc Cohen, CFE, Foundation chairman.
The Franchising Gives Back National Registry includes profiles of charitable work for registered members spanning a wide spectrum of industries and non-profit organizations. Examples include the recent winners of the 2016 Franchising Gives Back Awards, such as Edible Arrangements and its Edible Cares program; Auntie Anne's support of Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation; Ampex Brands' commitment to serving children who have lost a military parent since 9/11; Benetrends Financial, whose CEO created a non-profit, The Little Rock Foundation, that aims to improve the lives of blind and visually impaired children; and AAMCO Transmissions, Inc. franchisee Gary Denton, who founded the Wheels of Freedom Project.
