News Release |
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: DATE: August 3, 2021 |
CONTACT: Kathy Sautter 716-635-5577 |
JEFF WINTER CELEBRATES 15 YEARS AS PRESIDENT OF EDEN CORN FESTIVAL | |
WILLIAMSVILLE, N.Y. — Tops Friendly Markets has a long standing tradition of being a staple sponsor for the Eden Corn Festival that dates back almost as long as the festival itself. But the true glue that holds this festival together lies in its leadership, Jeff Winter, the festival’s president who is celebrating his 15th year in the role. While Jeff has been actively involved in the festival since he was in his youth alongside his father who was a firefighter, Jeff officially took the reigns as president to help the organization get on its feet after serving on the board for 17 years. “I saw an opportunity to turn things around,” said Jeff. “We had a strong board of directors, but saw some opportunities for sponsorship that would help sustain us long-term and help us financially. I saw that the festival needed to be treated like a business in order to be successful and with a strong board to support me I knew we could be.” And Jeff knows a thing or two about running a strong business as he has been the store manager of the Hamburg Tops for six years and with Tops as a company for 43. He jokes that between the festival and Tops he’s known as the Mayor. When asked what he loves most about the Eden Corn Festival Jeff noted the day it opens. “All the hard work that goes into this makes opening day the best day, and this year has been really crazy! Planning started in January. In March we weren’t sure where things were going and by May I thought we had to pull the plug. By June 1st we made the decision we were doing this, but still had capacity limits. We stayed the course even with the ever-changing COVID restrictions.” While things will change this year because of COVID - no corn eating contest or Jeff’s personal favorite-the parade, other festivities remain like corn husking, and entertainment, albeit scaled back a little bit. “I personally take a lot of pride in this event. It’s a great event and I’m very glad Tops has been on board and very supportive,” said Jeff. “All of my bosses have been supportive if I’m getting calls for the festival and I have to pull double duty. They understand how important this event is to the community.” Jeff also loves how this event supports about 20 non-profits in town by hiring them to manage area parking lots. From the Girl and Boy Scouts and local fire departments, the Eden Festival is truly an event that benefits the community on a variety of levels. Make sure you join Jeff for this year’s Eden Corn Festival August 5-8, 2021! For more information visit Eden Corn Festival.
### About Tops Friendly Markets Tops Markets, LLC is headquartered in Williamsville, NY and operates 157 full-service supermarkets with five additional franchise stores and is the largest private, for-profit employer in Western New York. As a leading grocery retailer in New York, northern Pennsylvania, and western Vermont, and with the support of 15,000 associates, our core mission is to help our communities flourish. We support programs that seek to eradicate hunger and disease; promote the education of our youth; and to ensure we reduce environmental waste and energy consumption while providing our customers with sustainably sourced, high quality products. For more information, visit www.topsmarkets.com
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