The Chick-fil-A Foundation released its 2018 donations report Monday and touted the funding it provided to charities including Covenant House, Fellowship of Christian Athletes and the Salvation Army. In the process the business gave a preview of what organizations it plans on supporting in 2019.
The Atlanta-based fast food chain announced that in 2019 it will donate to organizations that focus on education, hunger and homelessness. Some of the organizations that will receive the largest donations are the Atlanta Music Project for $250,000, Morehouse School of Medicine for $125,000, Westside Future Fund Inc. for $500,000 and City of Refuge, $1 million.
Chick-fil-A is no stranger to the spotlight, frequently making national headlines with CEO Dan Cathy’s stances on gay marriage. In a 2012 interview with the Baptist Press, Cathy — a devout Baptist — said the company operates on “biblical principles” and he believes in the “biblical definition of the family unit,” which prompted plans for a nationwide same-sex kiss-in at the restaurant’s over 1,000 locations.
In 2011 when the company offered to donate sandwiches and dessert to a Pennsylvania church’s marriage seminar it was met with backlash from gay-rights and student groups across the nation who called for a boycott of the business.
Chick-fil-A donated $1.65 million to the Fellowship of Christian Athletes and $115,000 to The Salvation Army in 2018. Both organizations have questionable histories in relation to LGBTQ rights and homosexual marriage.
Last month, the company announced that it will be opening four Metro Detroit locations in Allen Park, Northville, Novi and Shelby Township in 2020, with the Allen Park location slated to open in January.
For more information on the company’s charitable activity, click here.