Eckrich, Operation Homefront and Safeway Partner to Honor Military Family

LISLE, Ill., Sept. 30, 2016 -- Eckrich, the makers of naturally hardwood smoked sausage and savory deli meats, teamed up with Safeway and Operation Homefront, a national nonprofit whose mission is to build strong, stable, and secure military families, to honor a Portland, Oregon military family on Thursday.

The Knight Family Receives One Year of Free Groceries at Safeway, Courtesy of Eckrich

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/153663da-9208-416f-b523-43841df2df0f

Eckrich surprised the Knight family at Safeway in Salem, Oregon to honor, thank and support the family for their service. They were presented with a gift of free groceries for one year at Safeway, valued at more than $13,000, courtesy of Eckrich. As part of the event, crowds of shoppers were treated to samples of delicious Eckrich smoked sausage and deli meat, live country music and an appearance by Portland Country radio station 99.5. In addition, Eckrich provided local military service members and their families with $25 Safeway gift cards to thank them for their service.

Parker Knight served in the US Army for six years. He spent a year in Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. His wife, Eliza, is his full-time caregiver and a member of Operation Homefront’s Hearts of Valor^® program, a network of more than 3,000 caregivers of wounded service members which provides annual retreats, support groups and online communities. The couple has a young son.

“We’re so grateful for this gift from Eckrich,” said Eliza Parker. “Food security has been an issue for us, so free groceries for a year will help our family so much.”

The surprise is part of the ongoing campaign by Eckrich to honor, thank and support military families through its partnership with Operation Homefront. Eckrich, in its fifth year of partnership with Operation Homefront, has donated more than $2.5 million to the organization since 2012.

“Eckrich is proud to continue supporting military families across the country,” said Jennifer Zmrhal, Senior Director, Marketing, Smithfield Foods. “We appreciate Safeway’s partnership and we are honored to present the Knight family with one year of free groceries.”

For more information about Eckrich, please visit www.eckrich.com or follow Eckrich on Facebook and Twitter.

Eckrich is a brand of Smithfield Foods.

About Eckrich 
Founded by Peter Eckrich in 1894, Eckrich has a rich heritage starting from a small meat market in Fort Wayne, Ind. Through it all, Eckrich meats have been recognized for their great taste and supreme quality, craftsmanship, care and pride. For more information, visit www.eckrich.com.

About Smithfield Foods
Smithfield Foods is a $14 billion global food company and the world's largest pork processor and hog producer. In the United States, the company is also the leader in numerous packaged meats categories with popular brands including Smithfield®, Eckrich®, Nathan's Famous®, Farmland®, Armour®, John Morrell®, Cook's®, Kretschmar®, Gwaltney®, Curly's®, Margherita®, Carando®, Healthy Ones®, Krakus®, Morliny®, and Berlinki®. Smithfield Foods is committed to providing good food in a responsible way and maintains robust animal care, community involvement, employee safety, environmental and food safety and quality programs. For more information, visit www.smithfieldfoods.com.

About Operation Homefront
A national nonprofit, Operation Homefront builds strong, stable, and secure military families so that they can thrive in the communities they have worked so hard to protect.  With more than 3,200 volunteers nationwide, Operation Homefront has provided assistance to tens of thousands of military families since its inception shortly after 9/11. Recognized for superior performance by leading independent charity oversight groups, 92 percent of Operation Homefront’s expenditures go directly to programs that provide support to our military families. For more information, go to www.OperationHomefront.net.

Contact:
Faye Shroff
Breaking Limits for Eckrich
Cell: (704) 591-4353
E-Mail: [email protected]