Wegmans Presents ‘18,000-lb. Valentine’ to Food Bank

Wegmans Food Markets delivered what it called “an 18,000-pound Valentine” to the Greater Boston Food Bank on Friday, Feb. 14. The organization will then distribute the nine tons of nonperishable food items to food pantries serving the Newton, Mass., area, where Wegmans’ soon-to-open Chestnut Hill store is located.

Store employees will be at the food bank when the donation arrives via tractor trailer to help unload it. Donated items include canned fruits, vegetables, soups, juices and cereals.

“This donation is symbolic of our commitment to feed those in need, and we hope it also demonstrates that we are serious about giving back to communities where our customers and employees live and work,” said Rich Boscia, Chestnut Hill store manager.

Tradition of Giving

In 2013, Wegmans donated 16.5 million pounds of food to local food banks, food pantries and soup kitchens in all of its market areas. The company also takes part in annual food bank donation programs at checkout. Since 1993, Wegmans has raised $23 million-plus through these programs, with all proceeds going directly to local agencies.

“Serving more than a half-million residents is no easy task so we are very appreciative of great partners and donors like Wegmans,” noted Cheryl Schondek, VP of food acquisition at the Greater Boston Food Bank, the largest hunger relief organization in New England and a member of Chicago-based Feeding America’s national network of food banks.

Wegmans Chestnut Hill is slated to open on Sunday, April 27; in advance of the store’s grand opening, a second-level 10,500-square-foot wine, beer and spirits shop will debut on Saturday, March 29.

Based in Rochester, N.Y., family-owned Wegmans operates 83 stores in New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Virginia, Maryland, and Massachusetts.