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Waffle House to serve up help for ECSO
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Effingham County Sheriff Jimmy McDuffie, left, and Sgt. Brian Mundy of the ECSO Traffic Enforcement Unit talk with Waffle Houses Jordan Truesdale about the restaurants effort to help with Red Ribbon Week. - photo by Photo by Pat Donahue

Diners at Waffle House can do more than just get it scattered, smothered and covered or diced and chunked starting Friday morning.


From Friday at 7 a.m. until Saturday at 7 a.m., 30 percent of all sales at the Rincon Waffle House will be donated to the Effingham County Sheriff’s Office Traffic Enforcement Unit for their support of Red Ribbon Week. Red Ribbon Week, a nationwide substance abuse and domestic violence awareness initiative, will be held Oct. 23-31.


“I know that will touch a lot of lives in Effingham County,” said Jordan Truesdale, area people director for Waffle House. “People can come in and get a great delicious meal and also give money back to a great cause. We’re excited.”


Said Effingham County Sheriff Jimmy McDuffie: “We’ve been trying to fund it the best way we could. For Waffle House to volunteer to do this for us really means a lot and we really appreciate it.”


Sgt. Brian Mundy approached Waffle House about helping with Red Ribbon Week activities. Truesdale decided to up the ante.


“We said, ‘let’s make it big and bring in people,’” she said. “We’re going to be super-staffed and we’re going to have lots of extra food on hand.”


The money raised will go toward various efforts to encourage a drug-free lifestyle among kids. It may be used to boost prizes in a drug-free poster contest, with one winner each from the elementary, middle and high school levels.


“We’re trying to promote different programs to get the kids to stay drug-free,” Sheriff McDuffie said. “If we reach one child and save them from getting into the drug scene, it’s well worth every dime we put into it. I had a police chief ask me one time, ‘you’re talking about tens of thousands of dollars? Is one child worth it?’ I think they are.”


Truesdale said the causes espoused by Red Ribbon Week are important to Waffle House.


“The ‘best me is drug free’ is something we believe in,” she said. “It’s important to catch them early. This is a cause Waffle House believes in.”


Truesdale expects the restaurant to be busy, meaning it could bring plenty of receipts, Friday night and Saturday morning.


“It depends on the night. Friday nights are popular after football games,” she said. “We’re expecting sales to be real fantastic.”