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2024 Chick-fil-A True Inspiration Awards Honor Outstanding Nonprofits
January 9, 2024
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More than $5 million in grants awarded across 41 U.S. cities, Puerto Rico and Canada
Every year, Chick-fil-A, Inc. helps nonprofits start the calendar year strong with donations through its True Inspiration Awards® program.
Hundreds of nonprofits apply for the grants – or are nominated by a local Chick-fil-A Owner-Operator. Submissions are evaluated based on our four corporate social responsibility pillars, which help guide our giving:
• Caring for people
• Caring for communities
• Caring for others through food and
• Caring for our planet
As we choose our winners, we consider the significance of the concern being addressed, the number of individuals reached through the work, and the potential our gift has to amplify the positive impact that’s already been made by that organization.
Our 2024 True Inspiration Awards grants range from $30,000 up to the $350,000 S. Truett Cathy Honoree, awarded to one special organization that embodies the ideals of our founder. You can read about Joy Meadows, the Kansas City-based recipient of this year’s top award, here.
Caring for people
Peak Education of Colorado Springs, Colorado, received a $200,000 grant to continue their focus on closing opportunity gaps for low-income families. Their name represents the four “peaks” students must conquer to find success: social skills and mental health; self-advocacy and life skills; postsecondary and career preparedness and community engagement.
Serving about 400 youths from 7th grade to the college level, Peak Education provides sustained support and mentoring beginning in middle school and continuing into the college years. Their curriculum is aimed at helping each student achieve college admission and graduation. Ninety percent of the students served are the first in their family to attain this level of education.
This donation from Chick-fil-A will allow Peak Education to partner with three additional public schools in 2024 and continue building its middle and high school programming.
Other recipients in the Caring for People category include:
• Crispus Attucks Association of York in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: $125,000
• Adaptive Sports Center of Crested Butte, Colorado: $75,000
• Boys & Girls Clubs of Tucson, Arizona: $50,000
Caring for Communities
Generate Hope, the recipient of a $125,000 grant, addresses an invisible crisis that is a growing American concern: providing a continuum of care for trafficking survivors. The True Inspiration Awards grant will enable this organization to expand its trauma recovery programs with two campuses for women 18 years and over and pursue planning for an emergency shelter for victims in urgent situations.
Survivors of trafficking—many who were lured into the trade as young as 14 years old—experience complex trauma and have a wide range of long-term needs. These include physical and psychological safety, coping skills, basic necessities, physical and mental healthcare, education, vocational support and more. Generate Hope addresses these complex challenges through free, safe housing and ongoing therapy and education for clients in San Diego, northern Colorado and around the U.S.
Since opening in 2009, Generate Hope has helped over 150 women find a life of freedom. Three out of four women are empowered to leave the trade for good, thanks to their services.
Additional Caring for Community award winners:
• Community Human Services of Monterey, California: $200,000
• Hornbuckle Foundation of Littleton, Colorado: $75,000
• Family Promise of Gallatin Valley, Montana: $50,000
Caring for Others through food
Harlem Grown Youth Education Program addresses the hunger facing 24% of low-income children and their families in New York City’s Harlem community. The Youth Education Program consists of seven intensive school partnerships where Harlem Grown educators use cooking demonstrations to explain the value of nutrition and support students ages 5-18 as they learn about the farm-to-food process and sustainable agriculture. Harlem is somewhat of a “food desert” with one supermarket supplying produce for the 14 bodegas there.
In addition to school partnerships, the organization offers Saturday programming, monthly community fairs and festivals, a seven-week summer camp and a Mobile Teaching Kitchen. They encourage the community to engage in healthy food choices by sharing produce grown on their farms free of charge.
With the $200,000 grant from Chick-fil-A, Harlem Grown plans to enhance its newly launched Independent Afterschool Program, created to address the 4 in 5 children who go home alone after school. By providing quality childcare and experiential learning at the end of the school day, this program supports Harlem Grown’s goal of better health outcomes for the 7,500 children they serve each year.
Other recipients of Caring for Others through Food grants are:
• Weld Food Bank of Greeley, Colorado: $125,000
• Tempe Community Action Agency in Tempe, Arizona: $75,000
• Good Shepherd Food Bank of Maine in Lewiston, Maine: $50,000
Caring for our planet
For nearly 70 years, the Alice Ferguson Foundation has shared the wonder and excitement of outdoor, hands-on learning with students and families in Virginia, Maryland and Washington, D.C. As the recipient of a $200,000 grant, they will further expand their experiential initiatives aimed at promoting sustainable practices and protecting our planet.
The Foundation’s comprehensive environmental education programs target K-12 students and teachers from underserved urban communities in the area. They expect to engage 8,000 students, at least 100 teachers and 2,000 community volunteers in 2024.
Along with its science-based programming for Title I schools, The Alice Ferguson Foundation actively contributes to the preservation of our planet through its multi-state Trash Free Potomac Watershed Initiative. By engaging citizens in environmental stewardship, they have removed over 8 million pounds of trash from local waterways since 1989.
Other recipients of Caring for our Planet grants are:
• YMCA of Northern Colorado in Lafayette, Colorado: $125,000
• Loveland Living Planet Aquarium of Draper, Utah: $75,000
• Conservation Legacy of Durango, Colorado: $50,000
Global Recipients
This year, we added a Global Recipients Category to recognize nonprofits making an impact in Puerto Rico and Canada.
Our Global Recipients are:
• Banco de Alimento de Puerto Rico: $200,000
• East York Meals on Wheels: $125,000
• Friends of Puerto Rico: $75,000
• Children’s Aid Foundation of Canada in Toronto: $50,000
• Living Lakes Canada Society of British Columbia: $30,000
You can read more about our Canadian winners here and our winners in Puerto Rico here. Read more about how we marked the 10th anniversary of our True Inspiration Awards here.
More than $5 million in grants awarded across 41 U.S. cities, Puerto Rico and Canada
Every year, Chick-fil-A, Inc. helps nonprofits start the calendar year strong with donations through its True Inspiration Awards® program.
Hundreds of nonprofits apply for the grants – or are nominated by a local Chick-fil-A Owner-Operator. Submissions are evaluated based on our four corporate social responsibility pillars, which help guide our giving:
• Caring for people
• Caring for communities
• Caring for others through food and
• Caring for our planet
As we choose our winners, we consider the significance of the concern being addressed, the number of individuals reached through the work, and the potential our gift has to amplify the positive impact that’s already been made by that organization.
Our 2024 True Inspiration Awards grants range from $30,000 up to the $350,000 S. Truett Cathy Honoree, awarded to one special organization that embodies the ideals of our founder. You can read about Joy Meadows, the Kansas City-based recipient of this year’s top award, here.
Caring for people
Peak Education of Colorado Springs, Colorado, received a $200,000 grant to continue their focus on closing opportunity gaps for low-income families. Their name represents the four “peaks” students must conquer to find success: social skills and mental health; self-advocacy and life skills; postsecondary and career preparedness and community engagement.
Serving about 400 youths from 7th grade to the college level, Peak Education provides sustained support and mentoring beginning in middle school and continuing into the college years. Their curriculum is aimed at helping each student achieve college admission and graduation. Ninety percent of the students served are the first in their family to attain this level of education.
This donation from Chick-fil-A will allow Peak Education to partner with three additional public schools in 2024 and continue building its middle and high school programming.
Other recipients in the Caring for People category include:
• Crispus Attucks Association of York in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: $125,000
• Adaptive Sports Center of Crested Butte, Colorado: $75,000
• Boys & Girls Clubs of Tucson, Arizona: $50,000
Caring for Communities
Generate Hope, the recipient of a $125,000 grant, addresses an invisible crisis that is a growing American concern: providing a continuum of care for trafficking survivors. The True Inspiration Awards grant will enable this organization to expand its trauma recovery programs with two campuses for women 18 years and over and pursue planning for an emergency shelter for victims in urgent situations.
Survivors of trafficking—many who were lured into the trade as young as 14 years old—experience complex trauma and have a wide range of long-term needs. These include physical and psychological safety, coping skills, basic necessities, physical and mental healthcare, education, vocational support and more. Generate Hope addresses these complex challenges through free, safe housing and ongoing therapy and education for clients in San Diego, northern Colorado and around the U.S.
Since opening in 2009, Generate Hope has helped over 150 women find a life of freedom. Three out of four women are empowered to leave the trade for good, thanks to their services.
Additional Caring for Community award winners:
• Community Human Services of Monterey, California: $200,000
• Hornbuckle Foundation of Littleton, Colorado: $75,000
• Family Promise of Gallatin Valley, Montana: $50,000
Caring for Others through food
Harlem Grown Youth Education Program addresses the hunger facing 24% of low-income children and their families in New York City’s Harlem community. The Youth Education Program consists of seven intensive school partnerships where Harlem Grown educators use cooking demonstrations to explain the value of nutrition and support students ages 5-18 as they learn about the farm-to-food process and sustainable agriculture. Harlem is somewhat of a “food desert” with one supermarket supplying produce for the 14 bodegas there.
In addition to school partnerships, the organization offers Saturday programming, monthly community fairs and festivals, a seven-week summer camp and a Mobile Teaching Kitchen. They encourage the community to engage in healthy food choices by sharing produce grown on their farms free of charge.
With the $200,000 grant from Chick-fil-A, Harlem Grown plans to enhance its newly launched Independent Afterschool Program, created to address the 4 in 5 children who go home alone after school. By providing quality childcare and experiential learning at the end of the school day, this program supports Harlem Grown’s goal of better health outcomes for the 7,500 children they serve each year.
Other recipients of Caring for Others through Food grants are:
• Weld Food Bank of Greeley, Colorado: $125,000
• Tempe Community Action Agency in Tempe, Arizona: $75,000
• Good Shepherd Food Bank of Maine in Lewiston, Maine: $50,000
Caring for our planet
For nearly 70 years, the Alice Ferguson Foundation has shared the wonder and excitement of outdoor, hands-on learning with students and families in Virginia, Maryland and Washington, D.C. As the recipient of a $200,000 grant, they will further expand their experiential initiatives aimed at promoting sustainable practices and protecting our planet.
The Foundation’s comprehensive environmental education programs target K-12 students and teachers from underserved urban communities in the area. They expect to engage 8,000 students, at least 100 teachers and 2,000 community volunteers in 2024.
Along with its science-based programming for Title I schools, The Alice Ferguson Foundation actively contributes to the preservation of our planet through its multi-state Trash Free Potomac Watershed Initiative. By engaging citizens in environmental stewardship, they have removed over 8 million pounds of trash from local waterways since 1989.
Other recipients of Caring for our Planet grants are:
• YMCA of Northern Colorado in Lafayette, Colorado: $125,000
• Loveland Living Planet Aquarium of Draper, Utah: $75,000
• Conservation Legacy of Durango, Colorado: $50,000
Global Recipients
This year, we added a Global Recipients Category to recognize nonprofits making an impact in Puerto Rico and Canada.
Our Global Recipients are:
• Banco de Alimento de Puerto Rico: $200,000
• East York Meals on Wheels: $125,000
• Friends of Puerto Rico: $75,000
• Children’s Aid Foundation of Canada in Toronto: $50,000
• Living Lakes Canada Society of British Columbia: $30,000
You can read more about our Canadian winners here and our winners in Puerto Rico here. Read more about how we marked the 10th anniversary of our True Inspiration Awards here.
