PALMDALE, Calif., Jan. 12 /PRNewswire/ — RedBrick Pizza Worldwide’s Charity Cafe Foundation has partnered with Operation Helping Hand to show appreciation to our troops at war and to provide assistance to families of injured soldiers who were wounded in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.  RedBrick Pizza franchisees and master developers nationwide who participate in this fundraising effort called “Red Fridays @RedBrick” will donate 100 percent of “Red Fridays @RedBrick” wristband sales and a portion of every pizza sold on Friday to Operation Helping Hand. The “Red Fridays @RedBrick” program will run each and every Friday until all the US troops return home.

“We encourage all of our franchisees and other businesses to spread the word to wear red on Fridays in a show of nationwide support and thanks to our troops,” said RedBrick Pizza’s President and Founder Jim Minidis.

The Tampa Chapter of the Military Officers Association of America started Operation Helping Hand to provide assistance to families of wounded soldiers recuperating at the Veterans Administration’s Tampa Medical Center.  “This facility cares for some of the most severely injured soldiers who are recovering from spinal and head injuries, amputations and other traumatic injuries,” commented Captain Robert Silah, USN (retired), chairman of Operation Helping Hand.  “The generous donations from organizations like RedBrick Pizza and its customers allow us to continue to provide this much-needed assistance.”

RedBrick Pizza is the leading fast-casual pizza franchise with operations in 12 states and Canada.  The company has garnered numerous accolades from trade and business press nationwide. In 2008, Restaurant Business magazine ranked RedBrick Pizza 8th of “The Future 50” fastest-emerging growing chains in America, while it ranked 254th in Entrepreneur magazine’s 2010 Franchise 500.

For more information on the “Red Fridays @RedBrick” program or to read a soldier’s personal story visit http://redfridays.redbrickpizza.com.