WWE superstar Titus O'Neil and PDQ plan to bring the party — the birthday party, that is — to Tampa's Sligh Middle School and Pepin Academy. Now through May, the duo will celebrate local students turning another year older with free chicken tenders, chips, freshly baked cookies and house-made sauces.
The Tampa-based chicken chain supplies the aforementioned spread, while O'Neil provides the special cake. Their latest partnership is part of the Champions of Character Birthday Parties initiative, which originated from O'Neil's childhood experience of not having a birthday party of his own.
"Titus is a phenomenal community leader and we feel privileged to partner with him again for his Champions of Character initiative all year long at Hillsborough County Schools," said Nick Reader, co-founder of PDQ, in a statement. "He continues to do amazing things for youth. We are proud to call him a friend of our brand and to be partners on such a great program."
The parties take place every third Wednesday of the month — with the exception of May, when two bashes for summertime birthdays are scheduled. Students who show great character, perfect attendance and grade improvement will receive an invitation to each party.
"We want to celebrate kids who are being great assets to their school," O'Neil said. "The goal is to give kids a birthday they will not forget."
This article appears in Sep 20-27, 2018.