The Jefferson police department on Wednesday received a donation of $2,790 from Firehouse Subs Public Safety Foundation for the purchase of two automated external defibrillators (AEDs).
Police chief Mark Clouse and police captain Heath Enns attend an awards event at the Ames Firehouse Subs to celebrate equipment grants awarded to local public safety organizations in the greater Des Moines area.
Also receiving grants were the fire departments in Story City, Des Moines, Altoona, and Northern Warren County. A total of $71,144 was awarded.
Representatives from Firehouse Subs and the manager of the Ames Firehouse Subs location were at the celebration. The majority of the donations were generated by the Ames location.
According to Clouse, the AEDs went into use as soon as they were purchased. “Our department is extremely grateful for being selected for this grant award and for Firehouse Subs’ mission statement as a whole,” Clouse said.
The grant funds are made possible by Firehouse Subs restaurants and donors. Each restaurant makes empty 5-gallon pickle buckets available to guests for a $2 donation to the Foundation. Donation canisters on counters collect spare change, and the Round Up program allows guests to round-up their bill to the nearest dollar. The Foundation is also the beneficiary of a charitable sales promotion in which Firehouse of America will donate to the Foundation a sum equivalent to 0.13 percent of all gross sales with a minimum donation of $1 million through Dec. 21, 2018.
About Firehouse Subs Public Safety Foundation – Firehouse Subs Public Safety Foundation was founded in 2005 in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, when Firehouse Subs founders Chris Sorensen and Robin Sorensen traveled to Mississippi where they provided food to first responders and survivors. As they returned home, they knew they could do more and Firehouse Subs Public Safety Foundation was born, with the mission of providing funding, lifesaving equipment and educational opportunities to first responders and public safety organizations. Since its inception, the non-profit organization has granted more than $37.7 million to hometown heroes in 47 states, Puerto Rico and Canada, including more than $425,000 in Iowa.
