Operations

White Castle continues charitable giving program into 2022

The St. Louis White Castle district donated more than $20,000 to a non-profit last year. Photo provided.

March 2, 2022

White Castle has started a program giving employees the opportunity to have a say in where the company's philanthropic money goes, according to a press release.

The District Charity of Choice pilot program began in 2021 as part of the brand's 100th birthday celebration. The company's restaurant operations are divided geographically into a few dozen districts. Each district worked with team members to identify local causes they wanted to support. For a few weeks during the year, the restaurants invited customers to round up their check to the nearest dollar, with the additional money going to the selected local charities.

White Castle's 350 restaurants raised more than $1.1 million for 48 different charities. That's in addition to the more than $1.1 million White Castle raised as part of its companywide round-up programs to benefit Autism Speaks in late 2020 and 2021.

The District Charity of Choice program was so well received that the company chose to continue it in 2022 and beyond. The 48 nonprofit recipients of White Castle's charitable donations in 2021 included everything from food banks, homeless shelters and humane societies to after-school programs, mental illness advocacy groups and emergency shelters for domestic violence victims. White Castle team members also donated thousands of volunteer hours to these organizations.

"As a family-owned business through four generations of leadership, we are always looking for organizations and causes in our communities that can benefit the most from our support," Erin Shannon, White Castle corporate relations manager and a fourth-generation family member, said in the release. "So we have developed this new corporate giving program in a way that not only benefits local communities but also empowers our team members to make a difference, too.

"Our pilot program in 2021 was a great success, and our 10,000 team members are eager to raise even more in 2022."

White Castle owns and operates more than 350 restaurants.