Kangaroo Express raises more than $1 million for troops
Published: July 29, 2011
WASHINGTON -- Kangaroo Express, a convenience store chain in the southeast United States, has surpassed its goal of raising $1 million for charities that help troops.
The chain has increased its goal to $1.5 million by Labor Day, said John Fisher, vice president of marketing for Kangaroo Express. Donations from customers will go the National Guard, the USO and the Wounded Warrior Project.
Of the 1,700 Kangaroo Express stories, about half are within 20 miles of military bases, Fisher said. In Fayetteville, N.C., home of Fort Bragg, has 55 stores. Additionally, about one third of Kangaroo Express employees have served in the military or have a relative currently serving.
As part of the effort, Silver Star recipient Tommy Rieman is visiting stores up and down the East Coast as a volunteer for the USO, letting employees know how much this support means to troops and military families.
"They ask how to give back, and to me, it's having that support system set up when you come home," Rieman said.
President George W. Bush cited Rieman in the 2007 State of the Union address to Congress. Bush noted that Rieman was shot in the chest and arms and suffered shrapnel wounds to the legs while using his body as a shield to protect the gunner in his Humvee.
"And like so many other Americans who have volunteered to defend us, he has earned the respect and gratitude of our whole country," Bush said
