Locals to adorn Cheerios box

ShopRite is marking the 10th anniversary of its community-based hunger-fighting charity, ShopRite Partners In Caring, by honoring individuals who raise awareness and funds to fight hunger in their local communities.
Lorrie Somoza of West Wildwood and Peggy Abadie of North Cape May are among the ShopRite associates honored on 125,000 limited-edition Cheerios boxes for their store’s commitment to fighting hunger in their local community through the ShopRite Partners In Caring program.
The two Cape May Countians were selected to appear on the Cheerios box after the ShopRite of Rio Grande took a top spot out of 30 winning stores in a contest sponsored by ShopRite and General Mills in support of National Hunger Action Month in September.
The box will be unveiled in a special ceremony at the ShopRite of Rio Grande on Tuesday, March 31 at 11 a.m.
In marking the anniversary of the program, ShopRite teamed up with General Mills in a “10 Years – 10 Heroes” contest, a search for 10 local heroes—five children and five adults—who actively engage in the fight against hunger.
The “10 Years – 10 Heroes” contest recognized people who devote time, money, and energy to help battle hunger. Family, friends and community members submitted nomination essays describing individuals who are passionate about assisting in the fight in their local communities.
The 10 heroes were selected based on their participation in activities to raise funds or collect food, the spirit in which the activities were conducted and the results achieved.
The New Jersey winners are: Jacquelyn Broadfoot of Bloomfield; Daniel A. Galligan of Old Bridge; Stanley Serdakowski of Gladstone; Gabriela, Stephanie, and Stephen Toledo of Randolph.
Other winners included: Joanne Chadziewicz of Plainville, CT; Bill Pere of Mystic, CT; George Karp of Mamaroneck, NY; and Payton Sinkbeil of Pottstown, PA.
The 10 local heroes, alongside 61 ShopRite associates, will be featured on the front panel of a limited-edition Cheerios box—the eighth in a series—which will be on shelves this spring exclusively at ShopRite stores.
ShopRite associates raised more than $290,000 during a two-week contest by offering $1 donation cards to customers at checkout, constructing displays to bring awareness to the issue of hunger, and holding in-store events to support the cause.
General Mills donated an additional $20,000 to the ShopRite Partners In Caring Fund, a component fund of the Community Foundation of New Jersey.