RETAIL PATRIOT NOMINEES NOW BEING ACCEPTED
Frozen & Dairy Buyer magazine and Ruiz Food Products are now accepting nominations for winners of the Retail Patriot Awards to be presented this October during the convention of the National Frozen & Refrigerated Foods Association.
Nominees should be retailers that have gone “above and beyond the call of duty” in supporting our troops and veterans. If you can suggest a nominee, or would like to nominate your own company, please send your information to Frozen & Dairy Buyer, to the attention of either Paul Chapa (paul@fdbuyer.com, 913-481-5060) or warren@fdbuyer.com (603-252-0507).
RETAIL PATRIOTS HONORED
Nash Finch, Hy-Vee, Safeway, Harris Teeter and BJ’s earn Retail Patriot awards for their efforts to support our troops.
BY WARREN THAYER
Nash Finch, Hy-Vee, Safeway, Harris Teeter and BJ’s Wholesale Club were honored with Retail Patriot awards during the National Frozen & Refrigerated Foods convention Oct. 18, 2010 in San Francisco.
The awards honor retailers who go “above and beyond the call of duty” in supporting our troops and veterans. Ruiz Food Products, Dinuba, Calif., co-sponsored the award ceremonies and reception with Frozen & Dairy Buyer magazine, with offices in Olathe, Kansas, and Norwich, Vt.
Vietnam veteran Gary Spinazze, vp of vendor relations, Nash Finch, Minneapolis, accepted the first Retail Patriot award on behalf of his company. He described Nash Finch’s donations of time, money and resources to groups including Fisher House, Brooke Army Medical Center, the American Logistics Association, Nexcom Angel Tree, Toys for Tots and the Veterans Airlift Command.
Spinazze also called on all veterans in the audience to come up on stage to be recognized, and to receive signed copies of Gen. Tommy Franks’ book, American Soldier. Gen Franks, retired commander in chief of the U.S. Central Command, had signed the books specifically for the ceremonies.
Accepting the award for Hy-Vee, Des Moines, Iowa, were Bernard Beary, assistant vp of category management, and Muris Rahmanovic, purchasing specialist.
Hy-Vee continues to be a major supporter of the Honor Flight program, flying World War II veterans to Washington, D.C., to visit the memorial erected in their honor. In recent years, it has been involved with numerous trips, doing everything from providing snacks and cameras to corporately sponsoring entire flights, including one co-sponsored flight with Casey’s General Stores. Among other activities, Hy-Vee stores invite veterans and troops in for a free breakfast on Veterans’ Day.
Safeway, Pleasanton, Calif., has been actively involved in seeing that our troops are not forgotten, including working with Operation S.A.M. (Supporting All Military), a non-profit group that sends packages to troops deployed all over the world. Safeway also supports the Center for Veterans’ Advancement, helping veterans with such things as securing benefits and pensions based on disability, supporting employment readiness, providing business counseling and advocating for pro-veteran regulation and legislation. Accepting on behalf of Safeway was John Mas, category director, cultured dairy.
Starting in 2006, Harris Teeter, Matthews, N.C., partnered with the Jessie Lord Bakery to run a “Pies for Patriots” promotion. In 2008, the retailer increased the customer incentive with a buy-one-get-one-free, encouraging shoppers to donate the second, free pie to our men and women in uniform.
Customers loved the promotion, and Harris Teeter ran competitions to see which region could sell/donate the largest number of pies to the military. Over the last three years, more than 282,000 pies have been donated. Mark Williams, Harris Teeter’s frozen category manager, accepted the Retail Patriot award on behalf of Bryan Lane, the bakery category manager.
BJ’s Wholesale Club, Natick, Mass., has worked with Operation Gratitude in a letter-writing campaign designed to lift the morale of our troops and let them know that their sacrifices are appreciated. Accepting the Retail Patriot’s award for BJ’s was Carolyn Blashek, founder of Operation Gratitude, the California-based non-profit, volunteer organization that annually sends 100,000+ care packages of snacks, entertainment items and personal letters of appreciation addressed to individually named U.S. service members.
Prior to the start of the ceremonies, all of the members of the Marine Corps. color guard told Blashek they had received mail from the organization while serving overseas.
B.C. Fleming, the keynote speaker at the event, told of surviving the 2006 destruction of his Humvee by an improvised explosive device in Afghanistan, only to be horribly injured later by a suicide bomber who exploded three feet away from him. The decorated team leader of a recon platoon in the Army’s 10th Mountain Division, he endured reconstructive surgery and 14 months of rehabilitation and recovery.
Early in his ordeal, he consciously decided not to feel sorry for himself, but to overcome his challenges and inspire others in their own struggles. He’s written five books, and his story can be found at www.blownupguy.com.
Paul Chapa, sales director and managing partner of Frozen & Dairy Buyer, introduced a video of Gen. Tommy Franks, congratulating the Retail Patriot honorees and extending his regrets for not being able to attend. Chapa grew up in Hobart, Okla., the site of Gen. Franks Leadership Institute and Museum, and in his remarks the general offered thanks to Chapa, “a fellow Okie.”
Presenting the Retail Patriot awards were: Fred Ruiz and Kim Ruiz Beck, chairman emeritus and chairman, respectively, of Ruiz Foods; Paul Chapa and Warren Thayer, sales director/managing partner and editor/managing partner, respectively, of Frozen & Dairy Buyer.
A color guard from the 23rd Marines opened the ceremonies.
