DATE: Sunday, June 29, 1997                 TAG: 9706270271

SECTION: PORTSMOUTH CURRENTS     PAGE: 15   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY DORIS TOWNSLEY, CORRESPONDENT 

                                            LENGTH:   73 lines

FOOD LION WORKERS, SHOPPERS WIN BIG DONATION FOR HOSPITAL CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL OF THE KING'S DAUGHTERS GETS $100,000 DONATION.

If you shop at the Food Lion at 1907 Victory Blvd., you might have helped many of the area's sick or injured children.

On Wednesday, the Portsmouth grocery store presented a check for $100,000 to Children's Hospital of The King's Daughters in Norfolk.

Of the chain's 1,100 stores, the Victory Boulevard store sold the most paper ``balloons'' in a fund-raiser to benefit the Children's Miracle Network.

Customers could choose to add a paper balloon to their grocery bills. For each paper balloon sold, $1 was donated to the Children's Miracle Network, a national group of children's hospitals.

Customers could also contribute 50 cents through a separate coupon.

Through the sales of balloons and the 50-cent coupons, the Victory Boulevard store raised $1,700, to win $100,000 from the parent company, to be donated to the children's hospital nearest the winning store.

George Stinnett, a senior public relations associate for CHKD, said the event ``goes to show that every single dollar does count.''

``This store in Portsmouth, literally, at 50 cents and $1 at a time, transformed their already substantial contribution of $1,700 into $100,000 for the Children's Hospital of The King's Daughters,'' Stinnett said. ``It's like loaves and fishes. It is truly a miracle.''

Bruce Dawson, vice president of operations for the Northern Division of Food Lion Inc., presented the check to CHKD. He credited teamwork, leadership and partnership for making the contribution happen.

``I could not be more proud of you,'' he said to the store's employees.

Cecily Durrett, community affairs manager for Food Lion Inc., said she was also proud of the store's employees and customers.

``We're so proud that this particular store - because it does serve a community that perhaps does not have as much disposable income as some others - has chosen to step forward and give more than any other store,'' Durrett said. ``I think that says a lot for the customers.''

Dawson agreed.

``I think if you tell your customers you want them to partner with you to help raise funds, and you also promise them that the money will be used locally, it works for everybody,'' he said. ``So everybody wins. It's a win/win situation.''

The store's employees were enthusiastic about the event.

Mary Kay Miller, customer services manager for the Victory Boulevard store, said all the employees were excited about raising money for the hospital network.

``Everybody was talking about how many balloons they sold every day,'' she said.

Miller, who also served as the store's fund-raising coordinator for this event, used several incentives to get employees to compete with each other. She offered a Tickle Me Elmo to the store employee who sold the most balloons.

Jackie Anderson, who has worked at the Victory Boulevard Food Lion since August 1993, won the Elmo by selling $753 worth of balloons. Sandra Christensen, who has worked at the store for just over a year, came in second, with $535 in balloon sales.

During the presentation of the check, banners made by some of the children at CHKD hung at the entrance of the Food Lion store.

When CHKD was told on May 30 that the Food Lion store had raised the most money and that the hospital would get the $100,000 donation, ``we were just delighted,'' said Beth Duke, senior vice president for community relations and development for CHKD. ``To think that the Food Lion was going to donate $100,000 . . . was just terrific.''

The $100,00, Duke said, will go into the children's hospital fund, a general account, to be used as needed. ILLUSTRATION: Staff photo by MARK MITCHELL

Beth Duke of the Children's Hospital of The King's Daughters, left,

accepts the $100,000 check from Bruce Dawson of Food Lion Inc.,

center, and Jerry Morreale, right, the manager of the Food Lion

store on Victory Boulevard.

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