Pay It Forward Alabama, launched earlier this year to help feed health care workers during the pandemic, is partnering with other groups to raise money during Father’s Day weekend for the Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Alabama.
One dollar from the sale of every sandwich at Jimmy John’s locations in Birmingham between June 19 and June 21 will be donated to the BGCCA, according to a news release from Pay It Forward Alabama.
Brandon Stewart, a local Jimmy John’s franchisee and COO of Kensington Hill Capital, in partnership with the Phoenix Club of Birmingham launched Pay It Forward Alabama initially to raise money and donate boxed Jimmy John’s lunches to area hospitals. The Pay It Forward Alabama initiative has since expanded to donate money to the Birmingham Zoo, while continuing to help feed health care workers.
So far, it has raised more than $10,000 for the program to feed health care workers and more than $4,000 to donate to the Birmingham Zoo, which struggled to meet its financial needs because of COVID-19 closures.
Pay It Forward Alabama also has activated a GoFundMe page where additional donations can be made.
The initiative is the brainchild of Stewart, who is a member and former president of the Phoenix Club and went to leaders for a partnership. The Phoenix Club is a social and philanthropic organization for young professional men in the Birmingham area. It also helps sponsor the Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Alabama, which encourages leadership and motivates youth to reach their full potential through academic and recreational programs.
“We’re incredibly grateful for the support that our Birmingham community has given not only Jimmy John’s but also initial Pay It Forward fundraisers to feed our health care workers and to help the Birmingham Zoo, which experienced financial hardship as a result of COVID-19,” Stewart said in the release. “We want to keep that momentum, of taking care of our community, and are honored to partner with the Phoenix Club and Boys & Girls Clubs to raise funds for such a worthy cause.”
Stewart Parks, president of the Phoenix Club of Birmingham, said in the release, “We’re so excited to partner with Pay It Forward Alabama and Jimmy John’s. This difficult season has been trying for so many people, including those in the non-profit space and the ability to generate funding for beneficiaries.”
Saying the Phoenix Club of Birmingham has been a “phenomenal partner” and “stabilizing resourc ” BGCCA President and CEO Leisa Smith said: “Now once again, in the midst of COVID-19, through the ingenuity of a giving heart, the Pay It Forward Alabama fundraiser will help BGCCA meet the ever-growing needs of hunger, isolation and academic gaps for the kids of Central Alabama.”
