KFC and Pizza Hut Franchisees Donate $18M To Jamaican Relief Efforts

The organization will donate both cash and meal support to the devastated island.

A franchise operator for KFC and Pizza Hut, Restaurants of Jamaica (ROJ), has pledged $18 million to assist locals in rebuilding their lives after Hurricane Melissa, donating cash and meal support to the devastated island.

The effort includes contributions to government agencies and nonprofits.

“Jamaica is our home, and we are deeply committed to helping our people rise again,” ROJ managing director Mark Myers said in a statement, according to the Jamaican Observer.

“While we support the ongoing national relief efforts, one of [our] main priorities also remains assisting the members of our own ROJ family, many of whom have been negatively impacted,” Myers added. “We have already begun to activate our internal relief programs to support those members of our team who are most in need at this time.”

Recipients of the funds from the $18 million donation include: the Salvation Army Corps in St. James, Westmoreland, and Trelawny; Manning’s Boys Home and St. Matthew’s Mothers’ Union in St. Elizabeth; and Windsor Lodge Children’s Home and Friends in Need in Manchester.

This is not the first time ROJ has stepped up. In August, the organization donated $7 million to 14 children’s homes as part of ROJ’s 50th anniversary, according to the Jamaican Observer.

“For five decades, Jamaicans have embraced and supported us. This donation is our way of expressing gratitude—by investing in the younger generation and the dedicated caregivers who work tirelessly to shape brighter, more hopeful futures,” ROJ Marketing Manager Andrei Roper said at the time.

While ROJ’s assistance will boost recovery efforts, more will be needed. Hurricane Melissa, which made landfall Oct. 28 as a Category 5 storm, sustained winds up to 185 mph. The hurricane overwhelmed infrastructure in several western parishes and left thousands of residents without homes.