Dear ShopRite Customer,
From its beginning, ShopRite has been a company built on giving back. As responsible members of our community we take great pride in every outreach program, every donation and every act of volunteerism. And we participate, not because we have to, but because we truly believe that we are neighbors, and we are a part of one family.
We thank you, our loyal customers, for making us a part of your community, for treating us as your neighbor and for considering us YOUR ShopRite. It’s the support you’ve given us for more than 50 years that has allowed us to give back to so many community programs both large and small. We don’t take you for granted, and our commitments stand strong. This 2009 Charitable Report gives you a glimpse into some of the programs that ShopRite focused on this past year.
Vice President, Consumer and Corporate Communications
Hunger -- The Cornerstone of Our Giving
As a grocery store, ShopRite was naturally poised to become a force in the fight against hunger. After more than 20 years of ShopRite immersing itself in local anti-hunger efforts through donations to Feeding America (formerly America’s Second Harvest) and participation in the Check-out Hunger® program, the message became clear to us -- more needed to be done. Hunger is a year-round issue that requires year-round attention.
Responding, ShopRite established the ShopRite Partners In Caring program in 1999. This community-based, hunger-fighting initiative provides $2 million annually to qualified charitable agencies that help to feed the hungry in every state ShopRite serves.
2009 was a milestone anniversary for the program, as it marked 10 years of fighting hunger. The year was filled with efforts, like those listed here, that raised funds, created awareness and involved the community in the fight against hunger.
ShopRite Partners In Caring Day
Governors from six states honored ShopRite Partners In Caring by proclaiming September 23 as ShopRite Partners In Caring Day. While it was a big day for us, it was an even bigger day for the fight against hunger, as it now has official recognition in Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania.To commemorate the day and call attention to its significance in the fight against hunger, mayors, state senators and community leaders worked hard at more than 140 ShopRite locations by helping to “bag” hunger in their communities. While these VIPs were bagging groceries for customers, cashiers were busy scanning “Heart and Hands” cards for monetary donations made to the ShopRite Partners In Caring Fund.* During the month of September, ShopRite stores raised nearly $500,000.
*The ShopRite Partners In Caring Fund is a component fund of the Community Foundation of New Jersey, a 501(c)3. Donations can be made via www.shopritepartnersincaring.org.
Since it began, ShopRite Partners In Caring has donated $22 million to local food banks to help feed the hungry.
10 Years, 10 Heroes
As part of ShopRite Partners In Caring’s 10th anniversary celebration, ShopRite partnered with General Mills to search for Hunger Fighting Heroes in local communities. The Hunger Fighting Heroes were nominated by friends, family and community members. All 10 Heroes were featured on special edition Cheerios boxes sold exclusively at ShopRite.
NY Giants “Benefit” Hunger
With a collective spirit of giving, ShopRite teamed up with the New York Giants, Kraft and New York and New Jersey’s top chefs for the third annual Taste of the Giants Benefit. By generously donating their time and talents, the players and chefs helped ShopRite Partners In Caring raise awareness of the issue of hunger and more than $103,000 for the ShopRite Partners In Caring Fund.
Maryland ShopRites Join the Fight Against Hunger
All of ShopRite’s stores are dedicated to the fight against hunger and through the ShopRite Partners In Caring program, they are able to provide much-needed funds to local food pantries, shelters and soup kitchens. When Klein Family Markets in Maryland became ShopRites in 2009, ShopRite was honored to add the Maryland Food Bank as a new recipient of ShopRite Partners In Caring funds.
Photo Captions (above right):
Top: 2009 Hunger Fighting Heroes (left to right): Payton Sinkbeil, George Karp, Gabriel Toledo, Joanne Chadziewicz, Stephanie Toledo, Stanley Serdakowski, Stephen Toledo, Bill Pere, Jacquelyn Broadfoot, Dan Galligan
Middle: Domenik Hixon, NY Giants’ wide receiver, shakes hands with fan Bruce Jones at the Taste of the Giants Benefit, Stadium Club, Giants Stadium, October 19, 2009.
Bottom: At a March 2009 Maryland ShopRite grand opening, ShopRite Partners In Caring donated $70,000 to the Maryland Food Bank.
Environment -- Supporting Renewal
For decades, the ShopRite family has been concerned about the environment and conserving natural resources. Our stores have implemented policies, procedures and initiatives to reduce our environmental impact -- from the installation of solar panels on the roofs of the ShopRites of Wharton and Garwood, N.J., to extensive recycling and composting efforts to the “green” technologies such as super-efficient refrigeration systems and energy-saving lighting systems in many of our stores.
In addition to our in-store programs, our participation in local environmental initiatives gives us a chance to do even more for the world around us. These sustainability efforts allow us to work side-by-side with other community members looking to make a difference.
Photo (above, right): Solar panels on the roof of the ShopRite of Wharton, N.J.
In 2009, ShopRite recycled 104,000 tons of cardboard, 2,398 tons of plastic film and bags, 788 tons of newspaper, 389 tons of office paper, 107 tons of metal and 1,696 tons of waxed corrugated cardboard.
Recycling Center
ShopRite has operated its own recycling center since 1977. The facility, which operates 16 hours a day, six days a week, recycles plastic grocery bags, shrink wrap and corrugated cardboard from ShopRite stores.
Bag Reuse Program
In 1992 ShopRite implemented one of the first bag reuse and rebate programs in the Northeast. In 2009, 47 million bags were reused at ShopRite!
Earth Day Challenge
Each year, ShopRite conducts the “ShopRite Earth Day Challenge.” This event challenges thousands of volunteers to beautify their communities by cleaning up litter from local parks and beaches and planting flowers. ShopRite supplies the gloves and trash bags for each volunteer cleanup event. This litter-removal program has been in place for 11 years, and groups from Connecticut, Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York all participate.
Photo (above right) courtesy of Clean Ocean Action
Earth News
ShopRite publishes an annual environmental newsletter called ShopRite Earth. This award-winning newsletter is available in every ShopRite store and offers information about how we can all become more “green.”
Community Sponsorships
For many years, ShopRite has provided funding and cleanup materials to community-based groups making a difference. From litter abatement, coastal cleanups and tree-plantings to threatened and endangered wildlife preservation efforts, ShopRite has been there!
Education -- Investing in the Future
Helping those in need is about more than just a one-time donation. It’s about long-term commitments. By investing in educational programs, ShopRite continues on its course of establishing lasting changes in its communities, whether it’s improving self-confidence through education or inspiring creativity with the arts.
Partners in Training -- Preparation Equals Success
Partners in Training is an educational outreach program giving recipients of public assistance a way to re-enter the workforce and provide for their families. With three well-established community partners -- ABO Haven in Philadelphia, Goodwill Industries in Delaware and New Community Corp. in New Jersey -- Partners in Training is able to help so many.
Under this program, adults are trained in a mock supermarket where they can acquire cashiering, customer service and job readiness skills. Partners in Training’s success is measured by the hundreds of graduates who, each year, become valued members of the ShopRite family.
Photo (above right): Jo Ann Laurel of New Community Corp. (left) and Marty Glass of ShopRite's Patners in Training program stand with graduates Judith Lopez and Nanette Simmons at the program's Annual Recogition Breakfast.
Palace Theater -- Enriching Lives of Children
No matter the discipline -- dance, art, theater, music -- the arts enrich children’s lives. Our hope is that by supporting programs like the ShopRite Education Series at the Palace Theater in Waterbury, Conn., we will foster future “patrons of the arts.”
The Palace Theater’s Ticket & Travel Subsidy Fund is a program designed to provide financial assistance to students who might otherwise not have the opportunity to attend live theater performances. Schools applying to receive these funds are selected on a need basis and can receive up to a 100 percent reduction in ticket prices to presentations featured in the ShopRite Education Series.
Photo: Louis Belloisy
Athletics -- Character-building Lessons for Life
Some life lessons -- teamwork, sportsmanship, commitment -- are learned on the fields of competition. By supporting students’ outstanding sportsmanship with the ShopRite Cup and the good work of organizations such as Special Olympics New Jersey, ShopRite hopes to help foster a strong generation who will continue the tradition of giving back totheir communities.
Special Olympics -- Success For All
ShopRite believes in the Special Olympics. As a sponsor of the Summer Games for the past 22 years, we’ve seen the benefits these Games bring to the athletes, their families and the community as a whole. ShopRite volunteers and their families have experienced the joy these Games bring to so many, and it draws them back year after year. From handing out refreshments to staffing the ShopRite tents to offering encouragement and support, our employees were there!
Proudly, 543 ShopRite volunteers worked at the 2009 Summer Games held at The College of New Jersey in Ewing, N.J.
Special Olympics New Jersey Photos: Michael Rosenmertz
The ShopRite Cup -- More Than Just Winning
Sometimes it’s not only about winning -- it’s about how you play the game. The ShopRite Cup has been a tremendous vehicle used to motivate students through athletic performance and healthy competition. In its sixth year, the ShopRite Cup is presented jointly by ShopRite stores and the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA). Six New Jersey schools -- four public and two nonpublic -- receive this prestigious award every year.
Photo (clockwise from above left): The six winning high schools -- Bishop Eustace Prep in Pennsauken, Southern Regional in Manahawkin, Glassboro, Haddonfield, Immaculate Heart Academy in Washington Township, and Neptune.
Health -- A Commitment to People
Perhaps nothing affects our ShopRite family more deeply than the health and wellness of those around us. Giving support -- financial or otherwise -- to organizations that work tirelessly to raise funds, treat life-threatening illnesses or perform research is something we are dedicated to. We know it’s these groups that will someday play a part in finding a cure or developing a lifesaving surgery.
Komen for the Cure -- Racing in Hope
2009 saw the 2nd Annual Susan G. Komen North Jersey Race for the Cure with breast cancer survivors, families, friends and ShopRite volunteers all in attendance. ShopRite sponsored this event, providing continental breakfast for 10,000 runners and packing more than 1,000 boxed lunches for survivors at the race on April 26 at Branch Brook Park, Newark, N.J.
ShopRite also provided support to the Komen Central and South Jersey Race for the Cure at Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson, N.J., and the Komen Race for the Cure in Philadelphia.
Photo (above right): New Jersey Governor Jon Corzine (right) and Essex County Executive Joseph DiVencenzo help the Susan G. Komen North Jersey Affiliate staffers kick off the 2009 Race for the Cure.
ShopRite will be there in 2010 for the North Jersey Race on April 25, the Philadelphia Race on May 9 and the Central and South Jersey Race on October 3.
The ShopRite LPGA Classic -- Helping So Many
Since the 1980’s, the ShopRite LPGA Classic has provided a unique giving opportunity for ShopRite. Each year, this one professional golf event helps ShopRite support 36 different charities with varied missions from fighting hunger to educating children.
Through the 2009 Classic, ShopRite donated $1.2 million. These funds in many ways strengthen communities by allowing organizations to continue the work they do each day.
ShopRite has donated more than $22 million to charities by sponsoring LPGA events. Mark your calendar for the 2010 ShopRite LPGA Classic, June 14-20, The Dolce Seaview Golf Resort in Galloway Township, N.J.
Deborah Heart and Lung Center
“There is no price on life.” That’s quite a statement, and it is one Deborah Heart and Lung Center, Browns Mills, N.J. has embraced as its mission. This year, ShopRite officials had the honor of dedicating a new, state-of-the-art electrophysiology suite at Deborah, funded with more than $1 million raised by ShopRite.
This 139-bed teaching hospital specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of congenital and acquired heart, lung and vascular diseases.
For more than 50 years, ShopRite has been a supporter of Deborah, and the new wing will help the hospital continue its mission for years to come.
ShopRite stores are owned and operated by families -- some of whom have lived and worked in your community for generations. ShopRite families take great pride in the support they provide to local organizations, programs and charities. We’ve found that giving back to those we serve is just something a good neighbor should do. And, after all, we live here too.
For more information about ShopRite’s community initiatives and charitable programs, log on towww.shoprite.com or
www.shopritepartnersincaring.org.
