Local dignitaries help bag hunger at Warwick ShopRite

Warwick — On Wednesday morning, Sept. 21, many shoppers, but not all, realized that the person bagging their groceries at Warwick ShopRite was not a regular employee. In fact he or she was more likely to be a state representative, town supervisor, mayor or other local dignitary participating in the third annual “ShopRite Partners in Caring Day.” Assemblywoman Annie Rabbitt, Town of Warwick Supervisor Michael Sweeton, Greenwood Lake Mayor Barbara Moore, Village of Warwick Mayor Michael Newhard, Warwick Valley Athletic Director Gregory Sirico and Warwick Football Booster Club President Jim Sciarra participated. Sirico also invited seniors James Kolesar and Shane Connolly to help. The purpose of the annual event was to put the spotlight on the important issue of hunger in communities served by ShopRite stores. By asking local officials and other dignitaries to spend time assisting shoppers in bagging their groceries, ShopRite Partners in Caring hopes to call attention to “Help Bag Hunger Day.” It was an opportunity for the high profile volunteers to collect donations and explain the need to support local food banks, especially in light of the current economy. Donations collected by Warwick ShopRite throughout the year are distributed to the Warwick Ecumenical Council Food Pantry, the Newburgh Ecumenical Council Food Pantry and the Orange County Veterans Food Pantry. ShopRite Partners in Caring is a year-round, community based initiative that works with 50 food industry manufacturers to provide more than $2 million annually to qualified charitable agencies in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland and Pennsylvania.