Ralphs/Food 4 Less to Sell 'Mobiles' in Support Of
MDA's 2001 'Aisles of Smiles' Campaign
LOS ANGELES, July 31 /PRNewswire/ -- The Muscular Dystrophy Association
(MDA) will have something to smile about as Ralphs Grocery Company and
Food 4 Less Price-Impact Stores turn up the heat with a special summer
promotion.
As part of the 16th annual Aisles of Smiles product sales promotion to
benefit MDA, Ralphs and Food 4 Less said they will begin selling $1 Aisles of
Smiles "mobiles" to customers in their stores starting July 30.
For a $1 (or more) donation to MDA, Ralphs and Food 4 Less customers can
purchase the blue disks with a yellow "smiling face" in the center and the
phrase "Aisles of Smiles for Jerry's Kids" around the edge. Customers will
write their names on the purchased mobiles, which will be hung in the store.
The colorful signs will remain hanging in the stores until the mobile program
ends on September 4 at the conclusion of this year's Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon
over Labor Day weekend.
Proceeds from the mobile sales will join funds raised through the sale of
participating grocery products during the overall Aisles of Smiles program and
will be used to fund MDA programs. Some of these include summer camp for
kids, support groups for families, free flu shots, assistance with getting leg
braces and wheelchairs, medical care at MDA clinics and research to find
treatment and cures for more than 40 muscle-wasting diseases.
Last year, Ralphs and Food 4 Less raised more than $2.1 million for MDA.
"This year we are hoping to surpass last year's total dollars raised," said
Chuck Ackerman, senior vice president of Sales and Marketing for Ralphs.
"Ralphs and Food 4 Less employees and customers are concerned about helping
the thousands of people with neuromuscular disease who are fighting
courageously to lead happy, normal lives, and we are committed to helping find
a cure to these terrible diseases."
In hundreds of Ralphs and Food 4 Less, shoppers can show their support for
family members, friends and neighbors in their community with neuromuscular
diseases by looking for ads that feature participating manufacturers and their
products and purchasing the specially-marked products until Labor Day. The
products will be highlighted by smiling yellow "happy faces" urging shoppers
to "help Jerry's kids" by buying the marked items. MDA receives a donation
based on the percentage of the sales of these selected items.
Some of the manufacturers participating in the Aisles of Smiles program in
Southern California include Colgate-Palmolive, Dannon, Dial, Dole, Lean
Cuisine, Keebler, Minute Maid, Newman's Own, Sparklett's, Starkist, Stouffers,
Sunkist, Tyson, Welch's and many more.
"The Aisles of Smiles promotion presents a great opportunity for Ralphs
and Food 4 Less to make a major impact in the lives of children and adults
living with neuromuscular diseases," said Bob McKee, Food 4 Less senior vice
president of sales and marketing. "With the help of our customers and
manufacturing partners, we can make a difference in raising much-needed funds
to bring MDA closer to finding a cure for neuromuscular diseases."
MDA is a voluntary health agency working to defeat 40 neuromuscular
diseases through programs of worldwide research, comprehensive services, and
far-reaching professional and public health education. MDA was the first
nonprofit organization honored by the American Medical Association with a
Lifetime Achievement Award "for significant and lasting contributions to the
health and welfare of humanity." MDA provides free comprehensive patient care
to thousands of families.
Ralphs, the oldest supermarket company in the western United States,
operates 350 supermarkets in California under the Ralphs, Cala Foods and Bell
Markets banners.
Food 4 Less, the nation's premier price-impact supermarket chain, operates
108 price-impact, warehouse-style stores under the banners Food 4 Less in
Southern California and Las Vegas, Nevada, and Foods Co in Northern
California.
Both Ralphs and Food 4 Less are headquartered in Los Angeles. The two
supermarket chains are divisions of The Kroger Co., (NYSE: KR), one of the
nation's largest retail grocery chains, headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio.
SOURCE Ralphs Grocery Company
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Related links:
http://www.ralphs.com
Company News On-Call:
http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/732950.html
CONTACT:
Terry O'Neil of Ralphs Grocery Company,
+1-310-884-4680
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