100 local heroes to get free Chick-fil-A for a year as new location opens in Summerville

SUMMERVILLE, S.C. (WCBD)- A new Chick-fil-A location in the Lowcountry is honoring and rewarding dozens of local heroes for making a difference in their community.

The Atlanta-based chain’s newest location, located at 1726 State Road in the Cane Bay Shopping Center in Summerville, opens on Thursday.

Instead of the traditional giveaways for the first 100 customers on opening day, the restaurant identified 100 community members making an impact in the Summerville area who will receive free Chick-fil-A for one year.

The restaurant has also partnered with Feeding America to make a $25,000 donation to a local food bank to fight hunger in the Charleston area.

Operator Nadia Matson, a Ukraine native who immigrated to the United States when she was one year old, has worked her way up from Chick-fil-A team member to now franchising her own store.

Growing up, Matson worked as a cashier at her parents’ food store, learning the ins and outs of what it means to own and operate a small business. After her parents sold the store while Matson was in high school, she applied to work at her local Chick-Fil-A.

That first job in high school turned into a 16-year journey with the company. She attended Bob Jones University in Greenville, S.C. on a Chick-Fil-A funded scholarship, earning a degree in human resource management.

Following graduation, she was selected for the chain’s Leadership Development Program, spending the next two years living and working in seventeen different states before being chosen to operate the Chick-Fil-A at Northwoods Mall in North Charleston.

After four years of living in Summerville, Matson said she is excited about the opportunity to open a location in Cane Bay where she oversees a team of approximately 120 full and part-time employees.

“I am so thankful to have had the opportunity to grow as a leader during my years at Chick-Fil-A,” she said. “I look forward to empowering my team to reach their full potential and to be a bright light in the community.”

The Cane Bay restaurant will be open for dine-in, drive-thru, and carry-out from 6:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Saturday.