Grocery grab benefits family in need
A competition to win free groceries has brought out the best in community spirit.
When Ron Amos and Willie Roy from Tall Poppy Real Estate contacted the winner of the competition, for which the prize was a two-minute grocery grab at a Palmerston North supermarket, she told them she did not want to take the prize herself.
‘‘To our surprise she said ‘I don’t need it, I want to gift it to someone who does need it’,’’ Roy said.
Instead, she gave the prize to the Salvation Army, so the church could give the groceries to a family in need.
Leah Martin from the Salvation Army was nominated to do the two-minute grabbing at Melody’s New World. Beforehand, she planned to grab meat, frozen goods and lots of tinned food.
‘‘Two minutes is going to go really quickly,’’ she remarked before the start of her spree.
Rules stated that Martin had to work her way down every aisle, and she was not allowed to grab more than three of the same item.
She managed to grab $282 worth of groceries, which included meat, cereal, juice, two-minute noodles and plenty of tinned food. Tall Poppy also donated $300 worth of New World gift cards to the family.
The generous winner of the competition, who wanted to remain anonymous, was happy to ‘‘play a very small part’’ in the food being donated.
‘‘Once I got over my initial excitement, I realised that there were a lot of people who need this far more than I do… I can afford to shop at this store but I know there are a lot of families who can’t.’’
Amos and Roy had been at the supermarket giving out reusable shopping bags for the past month, as well as running the competition.