Stop & Shop Supermarket to raise money for hunger relief

Monroe —The Stop and Shop Supermarket Company on Saturday kicked off the 16th annual Food for Friends program to raise over $1 million for more than 300 local hunger relief organizations throughout the Northeast. All Stop & Shop stores will sell paper turkeys at checkout for $1 each. They can be personalized by each customer and will be displayed throughout the store. One hundred percent of the funds raised in Stop and Shop stores will be donated to the local hunger relief organizations, said William Cummings, executive vice-president of operations for Stop and Shop. The following local stores will participate: • Monroe — 475 State Route 17M; phone: 774-8448 • Middletown — 330 Route 211 East; phone: 341-2104 • Washingtonville — 60 Brotherhood Plaza Dr.; phone: 496-2920 • Newburgh — 1429 Route 300; phone: 566-4214 Despite the large call from various charitable causes this year, Cummings said there is still a strong need for the Food for Friends program. “In the United States, five million people live at or below the poverty level, and nearly a third of them are children,” he said. “Providing meals to those who need help is a cause that directly impacts each community in which we operate and gives each store the opportunity to form a lasting partnership with a local food pantry and make a difference.”