Pilot Fuels Stroke Awareness Month with Round-Up and Lifesaving Education

KNOXVILLE, Tenn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 8, 2025--

This May, in recognition of American Stroke Month, Pilot is raising funds for the American Heart Association to champion stroke prevention and education. From May 9 - 31, guests can join the fight against stroke by rounding up their purchases at checkout at participating Pilot, Flying J and One9 Travel Center locations nationwide*. All proceeds support life-saving programs, helping bring critical stroke education and resources to communities nationwide.

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“People are our top priority at Pilot, and one of the ways we demonstrate this is by caring for the well-being of our team members, guests and communities,” said Adrienne Ingoldt, Pilot’s chief marketing officer and member of the American Heart Association’s Life is Why Council. “Stroke is the fifth leading cause of death in the United States and raising awareness and providing lifesaving education is critical to helping people take action and save lives.”

This initiative is part of Miles of Good, Pilot’s recently launched giving program dedicated to making a positive impact in the communities it serves. It also marks a milestone in Pilot’s eight-year support of the American Heart Association’s Life is Why campaign, as the company expands its efforts to include fundraising specifically for American Stroke Month. In addition to fundraising, Pilot is providing its team members with virtual CPR training and access to stroke prevention resources throughout May.

“Pilot’s support of the American Heart Association’s Life Is Why campaign exemplifies the power of collaboration in driving meaningful change in heart and brain health,” said Kayla Smith, executive director of the Knoxville American Heart Association. “This will help fund more critical research and enable us to reach more communities with lifesaving initiatives. Together, we are making strides towards a healthier future for everyone.”

According to the American Heart Association, recognizing the signs of a stroke and acting quickly can be the difference between life and death. Throughout American Stroke Month, Pilot is helping promote the warning signs of stroke using the FAST acronym:

- F ace drooping
- A rm weakness
- S peech difficulty
- T ime to call 911**

For more information about Pilot’s American Stroke Month initiatives and to find a participating travel center, visit pilotflyingj.com/stroke-month.

*Proud Life is Why Retailer. The full round-up amount of each round-up purchase at Pilot Flying J owned and operated stores in the United States from 5/09/25-5/31/25 will be donated to the American Heart Association. Certain purchases (including, but not limited to, purchases made on fleet cards/direct bill programs or purchases made at the fuel pump) are not eligible for round-up contributions. Void where prohibited. © 2025 Pilot Travel Centers LLC.

**Provided for informational and educational purposes only and not as a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnoses or treatment.

About Pilot

Pilot Travel Centers LLC ("Pilot") is committed to showing people they matter at every turn as the leading energy and experience provider people rely on to fuel their journeys. Founded in 1958 and headquartered in Knoxville, Tennessee, Pilot is a wholly owned subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway Inc. and employs approximately 30,000 team members. As the largest network of travel centers, Pilot has nearly 900 locations in 44 states and five Canadian provinces, serving an average of 1.2 million guests per day. In addition to travel center services, Pilot and its partners offer trucking fleets a variety of solutions for fuel, credit, factoring, maintenance and rewards. The company operates North America's third largest fuel tanker fleet and supplies approximately 12 billion gallons of fuel per year. Pilot is shaping the future of energy as one of the largest providers of biodiesel and renewable fuels and through the development of its EV charging network and low carbon fueling alternatives. For additional information about Pilot, visit pilotflyingj.com.

About the American Heart Association

The American Heart Association is a relentless force for a world of longer, healthier lives. Dedicated to ensuring equitable health in all communities, the organization has been a leading source of health information for more than one hundred years. Supported by more than 35 million volunteers globally, we fund groundbreaking research, advocate for the public’s health, and provide critical resources to save and improve lives affected by cardiovascular disease and stroke. By driving breakthroughs and implementing proven solutions in science, policy, and care, we work tirelessly to advance health and transform lives every day. Connect with us on heart.org, Facebook, X or by calling 1-800-AHA-USA1.

Pilot is raising funds for the American Heart Association to champion stroke prevention and education.

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Ahn Sung-ki, one of South Korean cinema’s biggest stars whose prolific 60-year career and positive, gentle public image earned him the nickname “The Nation’s Actor,” died Monday. He was 74.

Ahn, who had suffered blood cancer for years, was pronounced dead at Seoul's Soonchunhyang University Hospital, his agency, the Artist Company, and hospital officials said.

“We feel deep sorrow at the sudden, sad news, pray for the eternal rest of the deceased and offer our heartfelt condolences to his bereaved family members," the Artist Company said in a statement.

President Lee Jae Myung issued a condolence message saying Ahn provided many people with comfort, joy and time for reflection. “I already miss his warm smile and gentle voice,” Lee wrote on Facebook.

Born to a filmmaker in the southeastern city of Daegu in 1952, Ahn made his debut as a child actor in the movie “The Twilight Train” in 1957. He subsequently appeared in about 70 movies as a child actor before he left the film industry to live an ordinary life.

In 1970, Ahn entered Seoul’s Hankuk University of Foreign Studies as a Vietnamese major. Ahn said he graduated with top honors but failed to land jobs at big companies, who likely saw his Vietnamese major largely useless after a communist victory in the Vietnam War in 1975.

Ahn returned to the film industry in 1977 believing he could still excel in acting. In 1980, he rose to fame for his lead role in Lee Jang-ho’s “Good, Windy Days,” a hit coming-of-age movie about the struggle of working-class men from rural areas during the country’s rapid rise. Ahn won the best new actor award in the prestigious Grand Bell Awards, the Korean version of the Academy Awards.

He later starred in a series of highly successful and critically acclaimed movies, sweeping best actor awards and becoming arguably the country’s most popular actor in much of the 1980-90s.

Some of his memorable roles included a Buddhist monk in 1981’s “Mandara,” a beggar in 1984’s “Whale Hunting,” a Vietnam War veteran-turned-novelist in 1992’s “White Badge,” a corrupt police officer in 1993’s “Two Cops,” a murderer in 1999’s “No Where To Hide,” a special forces trainer in 2003’s “Silmido” and a devoted celebrity manager in 2006’s “Radio Star.”

Ahn had collected dozens of trophies in major movie awards in South Korea, including winning the Grand Bell Awards for best actor five times, an achievement no other South Korean actors have matched yet.

Ahn built up an image as a humble, trustworthy and family-oriented celebrity who avoided major scandals and maintained a quiet, stable personal life. Past public surveys chose Ahn as South Korea’s most beloved actor and deserving of the nickname “The Nation’s Actor.”

Ahn said he earlier felt confined with his “The Nation's Actor” labeling but eventually thought that led him down the right path. In recent years, local media has given other stars similar honorable nicknames, but Ahn was apparently the first South Korean actor who was dubbed “The Nation's Actor.”

“I felt I should do something that could match that title. But I think that has eventually guided me on a good direction,” Ahn said in an interview with Yonhap news agency in 2023.

In media interviews, Ahn couldn’t choose what his favorite movie was, but said that his role as a dedicated, hardworking manger for a washed-up rock singer played by Park Jung-hoon resembled himself in real life the most.

Ahn was also known for his reluctance to do love scenes. He said said he was too shy to act romantic scenes and sometimes asked directors to skip steamy scenes if they were only meant to add spice to movies.

“I don’t do well on acting like looking at someone who I don’t love with loving eyes and kissing really romantically. I feel shy and can’t express such emotions well,” Ahn said in an interview with the Shindonga magazine in 2007. “Simply, I’m clumsy on that. So I couldn’t star in such movies a lot. But ultimately, that was a right choice for me.”

Ahn is survived by his wife and their two sons. A mourning station at a Seoul hospital was to run until Friday.

FILE - South Korean actor Ahn Sung-ki smiles for a photo on the red carpet at the 56th Daejong Film Awards ceremony in Seoul, South Korea, June 3, 2020. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon, File)

FILE - South Korean actor Ahn Sung-ki attends an event as part of the 11th Pusan International Film Festival in Busan, South Korea, Oct. 13, 2006. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung, File)