Owner of new Chick-fil-A restaurant shares life lessons with students

Students at the Broken Arrow Freshman Academy heard Jeffrey Kraft provide his best advice on leadership and entrepreneurship Monday during a visit to the school.

Kraft is the owner and operator of the new Broken Arrow restaurant at the Creek Turnpike and Aspen Avenue that officially opens Friday. 

After speaking with students, Kraft provided all teachers and students at the school with lunch and surprised an extra deserving teacher with free Chick-fil-A meals for a year. Kraft is also honoring 100 local heroes with free Chick-fil-A entrées for a year.  

Chick-fil-A, Inc. also donated $25,000 to Feeding America, which will support the Community Food Bank of Eastern Oklahoma in their local hunger relief efforts. 

Kraft’s restaurant will participate in the Chick-fil-A Shared Table  program to donate surplus food to local soup kitchens, shelters, food banks and nonprofits in need. Chick-fil-A has donated 60,403 meals in the wider Tulsa area.  

To date, Chick-fil-A has awarded $731,500 in scholarships to support continued education for Team Members across Tulsa-area restaurants. 

A graduate of the University of Oklahoma, Kraft said he is excited to engage with first responders, nearby schools, neighboring businesses and organizations. He said he’s also is delighted to offer mentorship opportunities to aspiring leaders in the area through his involvement with Junior Achievement. 

Located at 5501 S Aspen Ave., Chick-fil-A’s south Broken Arrow location will be open for dine-in, drive-thru, carry-out and delivery from 6:30 a.m. to 10 p.m., Monday through Saturday.  

The Creek Turnpike and Aspen Avenue restaurant joins more than 17 other Chick-fil-A restaurants serving the wider Tulsa market. 

In Broken Arrow, Kraft will be responsible for all day-to-day activities of the business, including employing approximately 100 full- and part-time team members, serving Guests, cultivating relationships with local organizations and businesses and tailoring philanthropic efforts to meet the Broken Arrow’s needs.  

Hailing from Edmond, Kraft grew up immersed in the hospitality industry, supporting his family business of nearly 100 restaurants across the Southwest. Kraft earned a business management degree from the University of Oklahoma and went on to start his own truck accessory company in Midwest City, Oklahoma.

There, Kraft was introduced to a local Chick-fil-A Owner-Operator who identified a unique combination of business acumen and customer service expertise in Kraft and asked him to join the Chick-fil-A team. With the support of his wife, Caitlin, and three kids, Kraft now steps into the role of local owner-operator himself and is thrilled to offer a gathering place for his Broken Arrow neighbors to create new traditions that will last a lifetime.  

“I feel so fortunate to have had the opportunity to shadow my Chick-fil-A mentor for nearly six years, and now today, it feels like a dream to say I am opening a Chick-fil-A restaurant of my own,” said Kraft. “This tight-knit community has welcomed my family and I with such open arms, and as local owner-operator, it is my goal that every guest feels the same welcoming environment.”