June 30 we were proud to bring Hoagie Day back to Philadelphia as one of the signature events for our title Sponsorship of the Welcome America! Festival and all I can say is we really weren’t kidding when we promised it was going to be the most jam packed Hoagie Day yet!

We had a Hoagie Heritage Day Proclamation from Philadelphia Mayor Nutter who officially proclaimed June 30th to be Hoagie Heritage Day.   We had a Hoagies for Heroes hoagie building competition between Philadelphia Police Officers and Firefighters who squared off in a charitable hoagie building competition in memory of fallen comrades.  We had a Rocky Contest where contestants competed for title of “Best Lookalike and Soundalike” Rocky.  And of course we had a Hoagie Feast where the 1¼  mile long hoagie we built earlier in the day was served free to the public.

But I have to say from the bottom of my heart, that one of the aspects I was most proud of was the Wawa Talent event that occurred right before our Hoagie Day festivities began.  Last night Wawa’s search for the best singing Associate came to a head at the finals of the first ever Wawa Talent Event, an American Idol-inspired singing contest that put our associates’ pipes on display!  After a three month open call for the best Wawa singer out of all our 16,000 associates, we narrowed down the group to the top 12 finalists, who sung their hearts out in the finals round last night.  To get to this point, the finalists made it through local and regional audition rounds, and boy were they deserving of the finals. Click Here to check out a little more about our incredible 12 finalists.

All of these associates were winners in my book, but first place deservedly went to Kristin Jackson from Perryville, Maryland, who truly knocked the judges out of their seats with Jill Scott’s One is the Magic Number. This followed up on another knockout performance during the regional audition round when she wowed the judges with a song from The Color Purple. Her singing style represents a mix of R&B and Gospel, inspired by musicians Maxwell and Alicia Keys. 

Before last night’s event Kristen told us she was looking forward to the crowd’s reaction as this was her first performance in front of a large crowd.  She also told us she cannot sing a song unless the song is in her soul and she can relate to it in some way.  To support Kristin, family, friends, and associates made the trek from Perryville to stand in the audience with handmade sings cheering Kristin on as they hope to see her win!

Here's a video clip from her performance.

WAW-Welcome_WMV9_Widescreen_426x240.wmv (14.38 mb)

Kristen was not the only one with a cheering section as all the 12 finalists had friends, family and co-workers at the event, providing all the love and support anyone could hope for.  It really was a wonderful reflection of how deep our Wawa family extends.

I’ve always said that we have the most talented associates working at Wawa, and each of these 12 associates is proof that this talent extends well beyond providing excellent customer service.  Congratulations to all of the finalists and thank you to each and every one of you for sharing a piece of you hearts and souls with us.  There was no better way to welcome America to our celebration.

‘Till next time…

Wawa Welcome America is shaping up to be an action-packed 10 days filled with family entertainment, music, history, and good old-fashioned fun. I recently got back from a joint press conference with Mayor Nutter where we announced some new details about the Welcome America lineup and it’s got me eagerly counting down the days until the festivities begin.

What excites me isn’t just Wawa’s role as the title sponsor of this “can’t miss” event of the summer, but also how Wawa Welcome America is a reflection of the many important values and traditions that are paramount to Wawa, our city, and our region. First and foremost, it’s a celebration of the rich history that defines our past and the collaborative spirit and perseverance that resulted in Philadelphia becoming the birthplace of our nation. Next, it represents our strong traditions – traditions that define us culturally from music to food to entertainment. Additionally, it instills a sense of community, bringing together people from across the region to celebrate our pride in America and our pride as Philadelphians.

As you likely are aware from reading past entries, at Wawa we place a strong emphasis on our traditions that have allowed us to grow and thrive over the past 200 years. We are proud to be a hometown company that stays true to our roots. Our Dairy began operations in 1902 and we are still manufacturing at the same plant and delivering to our hometown, and beyond. 

As the title sponsor of Welcome America, we’re proud to celebrate Philadelphia traditions and to also have the opportunity to weave in our own traditions throughout the festival. In particular, there are two signature Wawa events that I proudly announced at the press conference:

The first is a special, interactive exhibit on our very own Wawa Dairy that will be part of Welcome America’s Go 4^th & Learn series. As part of the exhibit, we’ll be sharing the history of our Dairy; offering (simulated) lessons in cow milking; and serving up chocolate, strawberry, and skim milk samples at the Wawa Milk Bar. Our 1918 Antique Dairy Truck will also be on display, a reminder of our rich heritage and how far we’ve come.

The second is Hoagie Day, a tradition we’re thrilled to bring back to the city where it all began in 1992, on a day when then-Mayor Ed Rendell proclaimed the Hoagie to be the Official Sandwich of Philadelphia. I’m confident in saying that this will be the biggest and best Hoagie Day ever. The Hoagie will, of course, take center stage with a mile-and-a-quarter-long hoagie served free to the public. (For those of you keeping count, that’s the equivalent of more than 13,000 Shortis!) That day, we will also donate a truckload of hoagies to Philabundance and will salute our hometown heroes with a charity hoagie building contest between the Philadelphia Fire and Police Departments. And we’ll also be paying homage to another Philly classic, Rocky, with a Rocky Idol Contest and special screening of Rocky at the foot of the Art Museum steps.

My apologies for such a long post, but as you can see there’s so much excitement in the works that I want to share with you! For details about both events and the rest of the Wawa Welcome America lineup, visit www.welcomeamerica.com. I hope to see you at these events as we celebrate our nation’s independence and the rich traditions of Philadelphia and Wawa.

‘Till next time…

It’s that time of the year again, when summer is just around the corner, and here at Wawa that can only mean one thing: Hoagiefest!

Not only can you get your favorite Shortis for just $2.99 during the summer (see the full lineup at www.hoagiefest.com), but it also means that for a third year we’re taking our 1960’s-inspired Hoagiefest Tour on the road with stops throughout the Mid-Atlantic. It’s our way of paying tribute to the almighty hoagie, celebrating our Wawa hoagie fanatics, and commemorating a summer of peace, savings, and Shortis.

I hope you can join us at a Hoagiefest near you:

June 3: Rio Grande, NJ
June 11: Toms River, NJ
June 30: Philadelphia, PA
June 17: Sandston, VA
July 16: Lewes, DE

For those of you in the Philadelphia area, we’re hosting a very special Hoagiefest on June 30 at the foot of the Art Museum steps as part of our Wawa Welcome America festivities! Check www.hoagiefest.com and www.welcomeamerica.com for tour details.

So what’s in store at our Hoagiefest events? For starters, each event will feature a quarter mile long hoagie served free to the public. Add to that a charity hoagie building contest between local police officers, firefighters, and community leaders; singing and dancing to original Hoagiefest tunes; a donation of a truckload of Wawa food and beverages to a local food bank; and, of course, plentiful games and giveaways. Each Hoagiefest event will also feature carnival games, a hoagie history display, and a special appearance by Hoagieman in his Hoagiemobile. And if you really want to get into the spirit of Hoagiefest, you’re invited to enter the Hoagiefest Poster Contest at your local Hoagiefest for a chance to win groovy Wawa prizes at the event.

Needless to say, there are a number of mouth-watering reasons to join the festivities. I can’t wait to see you there.

‘Till next time…