ALTOONA, Pa. – For the past 25 years, Sheetz For The Kidz (SFTK) has set out to provide support, hope, joy and happiness to children within the communities in which Sheetz operates.

The Sheetz For The Kidz Holiday program works with The Salvation Army to identify families and collect their holiday wish lists. Sheetz employees from every Sheetz operating area shop, wrap and host parties for all the participating children. More than $1.4 million was distributed last year, making the holiday season brighter for more than 8,800 children in six states, amounting to 16 children from each Sheetz store location.

This will also mark the 12th year of SFTK partnering with Make-A-Wish to sponsor families of seriously ill children so they can experience a weeklong dream vacation in Orlando, Florida. Fifty-four families will enjoy a cost-free vacation at Give Kids the World Village, an 84-acre, nonprofit "storybook" resort designed to provide accommodations for children with life-threatening illnesses and their families while experiencing the Disney vacation of their dreams.

In July, Sheetz customers can support SFTK through in-store fundraising. One hundred percent of customer donations go directly to supporting the children in their communities. In addition, throughout the year, customers can support local kids in their community through online donations and Amazon Smile.

Some ways consumers can support SFTK in July include:

• Making a donation at checkout.
• Purchasing a Sheetz For The Kidz water, with 25 cents from each bottle supporting the charity.
• Buying any Coca-Cola 20 oz. carbonated soft drink bottle between July 1 and July 31 (Coca-Cola will donate 5 cents per purchase to support SFTK).
• Shopping on AmazonSmile and selecting "Sheetz For The Kidz" as the charity of your choice (Amazon will donate 0.5% of purchases to the charity).
• Visiting www.sheetzforthekidz.org to donate online today.

A main fundraising event for the organization continues to be the annual Sheetz For the Kidz Golf Classic, which celebrated its 19th year in May at the Pinehurst Resort. This year, the event raised more than $700,000 for SFTK.

"Sheetz For The Kidz has been successful over the past 25 years due to the support of customers who donate funds at Sheetz locations, and business partners that have supported our annual golf tournament and other events throughout the year," said Sheetz For The Kidz Executive Director Sarah Piper. "We are also so grateful for the work of Sheetz employees, who have devoted their time and efforts to bettering the lives of children in their communities."

SFTK is an employee-driven 501 (c)(3) charitable organization that raises funds to support the Sheetz For The Kidz Holiday Program and Make-A-Wish.