Albertsons Companies Holiday Giving Campaign Provides Millions of Meals, Thousands of Toys and Financial Donations for People Throughout the U.S.

BOISE, Idaho, December 22, 2016 /3BL Media/ - Albertsons Companies today thanked its employees and customers across the many communities it serves for helping donate millions of nutritious meals and thousands of toys through the company’s 2016 Holiday Giving Campaign.

In all, Albertsons Companies’ 2,300+ stores and 275,000 team members are responsible for helping orchestrate major food drives and giving campaigns, donating more than 12,000 turkeys and hams, and collecting tens of thousands of toys to make the holidays memorable. In addition, the Albertsons Companies Foundation contributed $240,000 to fund charities at the forefront of hunger relief, juvenile diabetes research, veteran’s services, and grassroots community outreach.

“Helping individuals and families during the holidays and throughout the year is not only the foundation of our community outreach, it’s a key part of our business,” said Chairman and CEO Bob Miller. “We are in the unique position to touch the lives of countless people throughout America each day. We’re proud of how our stores, customers and employees have come together to have a positive impact on people in need, both during the holidays and every day of the year. ”

Albertsons Companies operates supermarkets in 35 states and Washington D.C. under 19 banners, including Albertsons, Safeway, Vons, Jewel-Osco, Shaw's, ACME Markets, Tom Thumb, Randalls, United Supermarkets, Pavilions, Star Market, Haggen, and Carrs. Each regional operating division chooses and manages its own giving programs, tailoring the outreach to the needs of the neighborhoods it serves. Whether it’s the Houston-area Randalls and Albertsons stores donating thousands of turkeys (delivered by a team member dressed as a turkey), or the Southwest Division office answering a charity’s last-minute call for 100 toys, the efforts of the stores and generosity of our employees and customers are illustrations of the true holiday spirit of giving.

Here are a few examples of the outreach initiatives that have made an immense impact on the most urgent needs of our neighbors during the holiday season.

• ACME Markets on the East Coast collected and donated nearly 394,000 pounds of food as part of WMMR Radio’s annual Camp Out for Hunger in Philadelphia, the largest single-location food drive in the country.  ACME was a major sponsor of the event, in which WMMR on-air personalities broadcasted their show from a tent to collect donations and raise awareness about hunger. Separately, ACME was fortunate to partner with two prominent and philanthropic Philadelphia Eagles players to deliver food donations to worthy local causes and families and thrill Eagles fans. Defensive End Vinny Curry and his Rush2Victory Foundation joined ACME volunteers and vendor partners to hand out 200 meal kits to Philadelphia families through NET Community Care and Big Brothers Big Sisters.  ACME recently launched a partnership with Eagles Safety Malcolm Jenkins and his Malcolm Jenkins Foundation. The inaugural event for this community-outreach effort was a donation of 140 turkeys to low-income Philadelphia families served by 27 local non-profit organizations and the Philadelphia Police Athletic League.
• Southern Idaho Albertsons stores were key supporters of the annual 7Cares Idaho Shares campaign with news station KTVB to support the Community Safety Net Campaign. The program benefits 10 local charities. Nearly 30 stores collected food and monetary donations and the Intermountain Division’s leadership team presented a $10,000 check and nearly 3,000 pounds of nonperishable food on-air at Albertsons Stadium.
• The Seattle Division’s Albertsons and Safeway stores teamed up with the Seattle Seahawks powerhouses Michael Bennett, Cliff Avril, Jermaine Kearse and Tyler Lockett for the annual Safeway Seahawk Sweep in early December in Issaquah, WA. The event earned more than $125,000 for local charities. The Seahawks stars each captained a team that included local first responders and Safeway customers.  The groups faced off in heated competitions, including turkey bowling and a shopping run through the store.  Bennett’s team came in first place, bringing in $35,000 for Hope Heart. Avril earned second place with $25,000 for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. Kearse was in third place with his $25,000 going to Rally Point 6, and Tyler Lockett came in fourth with $10,000 for Mary’s Place. The funds were donated by the Albertsons Companies Foundation and vendor partners.
• For nearly 30 years, Dallas-area Tom Thumb stores have joined WFAA-TV Channel 8 for Santa’s Helpers Toy Drive. The event, which has raised more than 1.5 million toys since its inception, is not only the largest toy drive in Texas but is also one the largest in the nation. WFAA’s broadcasters send out the call to Dallas and Fort Worth communities for new, unwrapped toys.

Another component of the Holiday Giving Campaign is in-store food donation programs that provided food bank clients with the ingredients for a traditional holiday meal or a bag of the most-requested, nutritious items, including peanut butter, tuna and vegetables. For example, the Shaw’s and Star Market stores in New England are conducting their annual Spirit of Giving Food Drive, in which customers can donate $5, $10 or $15 at checkout to provide a bundle or bag of food to a neighborhood food pantry or food bank.

The Albertsons Companies Holiday Giving Campaign isn’t exclusive to stores. Albertsons Companies corporate and division office team members also helped their communities with in-office food and toy drives. Some offices selected charity partners to fulfill the wishes of local children and families. Other offices adopted families and provided the elements for a perfect holiday, including gifts, a full dinner, a tree and decorations. This year the corporate teams across three campuses donated nearly 3,000 new toys for local charities, including Toys for Tots.