Giant Food Embarks on ‘Season of Sharing’
As part of its ongoing 95th-anniversary celebrations, Giant Food Stores LLC is launching the Season of Sharing initiative. From now through the end of the year, Giant Food and Martin’s Food Markets associates will make donations and volunteer their time to a local nonprofit associated with one of the Ahold Delhaize USA division’s three main charitable missions: feeding the hungry, supporting children and supporting troops.
In all, through more than 20 volunteer activities, a total of $35,000 will go to area nonprofits within Giant Food Stores and Martin’s store footprint.
“Supporting the community and giving back to the neighborhoods we serve, through financial support and volunteerism, has been a part of the Giant culture for 95 years,” said Matt Simon, VP of marketing at Carlisle, Pa.-based Giant Food. “Our teams of associates are passionate about serving their communities, both in and outside of our stores, and our Season of Sharing initiative enables them to deepen their relationships with the organizations in their neighborhoods in a meaningful way.”
The effort will roll out on Tuesday, Oct. 16, with associates in Warminster, Pa., volunteering at Fresh Connect Buck County, a free farmers’ market supported by the United Way of Bucks County. During the event, the associates will help distribute fresh produce to needy residents.
Additional examples of programs that each district has chosen to support:
- Salvation Army, Hagerstown, Md.: Associates will help set up, prepare and serve food for the Salvation Army of Maryland/West Virginia’s MANNA Feeding Program.
- Common Ground Café, Harrisburg, Pa.: Associates will set up, prepare, serve and clean up brunch for about 200 residents of the Allison Hill neighborhood. They will also provide games, crafts, book readings and other entertainment.
- Hazelton Integration Project, Hazelton, Pa.: Associates will donate, prepare and serve food for the Hazelton Integration Projects’ annual Breakfast with Santa event.
In other anniversary news, Giant Food marked the occasion by revealing a new urban-focused format, Giant Heirloom Market, which is scheduled to open its doors later this year in Philadelphia’s Graduate Hospital community.
Giant Food has more than 170 neighborhood stores in Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia and West Virginia under the Giant and Martin’s banners, employing nearly 30,000 associates. Parent company Ahold Delhaize USA is No. 4 on Progressive Grocer’s 2018 Super 50 list of the top grocers in the United States.