Schnuck Markets Tornado Relief

Origins:

This spring, two tornadoes swept through the St. Louis area. The first was on March 14, hitting the community of Arnold, Missouri especially hard. In response to the disaster, the Schnucks Community Kitchen was dispatched to the local store and served complimentary lunches to customers, teammates, vendors and neighboring businesses. Then on May 16, a second, more devastating tornado struck, and within 15 hours, Schnucks teammates responded with urgency and care. Dozens of teammates from every area of the business - stores, facilities, offices and logistics - mobilized to offer assistance both on the ground and behind the scenes.

With North St. Louis City and the Central West End neighborhoods being among the hardest hit, the Schnucks Community Kitchen was dispatched to a pair of stores in those areas and served as central hubs for teammates and products. As those affected by the storm made their way to the stores, teammates waited ready to serve them a meal compliments of Schnucks and several vendor partners. Teammates didn’t stop there - rather than wait for the community to come to them, they began to actively deliver meals directly into the affected neighborhoods. Collaborating with the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis and the American Red Cross Greater St. Louis Chapter, they ensured aid reached those most in need. Schnucks then followed with a Round Up at the Register and personal care item drive with 100 percent of donations benefiting the Urban League of Greater St. Louis and the United Way of Greater St. Louis.

Contribution:

To help with relief following the tornados, Schnucks teammates mobilized in the hardest hit neighborhoods, logging hundreds of volunteer hours to help deliver thousands of meals to the community with many truckloads of food, water, cleaning supplies and personal care items donated by the company.

Objectives:

The objective is the same as our company mission - to nourish people’s lives. Most of the time that mission includes providing food and sustenance to the customers of our 114 stores across the Midwest and careers to our nearly 12,000 teammates at those stores, offices, facilities and warehouses. However, there are certain times, like in the wake of devastating storms, when we take our mission even further, and we remain committed to standing with our community partners and continuing to help those affected as they rebuild and recover.

Impact:

Our tornado relief efforts come in many facets. Internally, we are able to rely on our teammates’ willingness to volunteer and our logistics experts who make sure product donations are where they need to be when they need to be there. Externally, with scores of locations across the St. Louis area, we can offer our customers simple and convenient ways to help those in need. As a result of the Round Up at the Register, Schnucks customers and the company raised $110,000 to support tornado victims with 100 percent of donations being split evenly between the United Way of Greater St. Louis and Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis. In addition to the round up campaign, Schnucks customers donated 20 pallets of some of the most sought after items as part of a personal care item drive that included paper towels, cleaning products, disinfecting wipes, flashlights/batteries, bleach, first aid kits, ponchos, toothpaste/toothbrushes, towels, lotion, rubber gloves, shampoo/conditioner, feminine products, baby products, diapers, toilet paper, soap and deodorant. Seeing our community step up in such a big way, both by rounding up their purchases and donating personal care items, truly is inspiring. It's a powerful reminder that nourishing people's lives goes beyond our aisles – it's about supporting our communities when they need us most. The devastation from the tornado was immense, but the spirit of generosity from our Schnucks customers and our teammates gives us strength.

Quote:

“Our mission to nourish people’s lives not only includes providing food and sustenance to our customers and careers to our nearly 12,000 teammates, it means responding in times of crisis when our communities need us most - including the neighborhood in North St. Louis where my grandmother opened our first store 86 years ago. I was able to see the devastation firsthand and it is truly heartbreaking, but we know our customers and community partners share our passion to nourish and restore the community, and we thank them immensely for their efforts and actions in the wake of the storm.”

- Schnucks Chairman and CEO Todd Schnuck

Support Statement:

“We’re incredibly grateful to Schnucks and its amazing customers for raising $110,000 through Round Up at the Register - with $55,000 going to the Urban League and $55,000 to United Way of Greater St. Louis to support tornado relief efforts! In addition to the funds, Schnucks also led a personal care item drive, helping collect essential supplies for families impacted by the May 16 tornado. From fresh food and hot meals to hands-on volunteering, Schnucks has been with us every step of the way. Special thanks to Board Member Ted Schnuck (Schnucks Executive Vice President of Supermarkets), Former Board Chair Todd Schnuck (Schnucks Chairman and CEO), the entire Schnuck Family, Schron Jackson (Schnucks Director of Community Engagement and Customer Care) and their incredible teams!”

- Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis Social Media Post