Nash Finch Company and Hugo's Marketplace Partner to Bring the Gift of Literacy to Hundreds of Jamestown Preschool Students

JAMESTOWN, N.D.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Today, Nash Finch Company NAFC, a Minneapolis-based food distributor, in conjunction with Hugo's Family Marketplace, announced that a $20,000 donation will be provided to support Jamestown fundraising efforts for the Dolly Parton Imagination Library. The donation was made by Nash Finch's CEO, Alec Covington along with Judy Magnuson and Kristi Magnuson Nelson from Hugo's, who were joined by the Superintendent of Jamestown Public School District, Robert Lech and North Dakota's First Lady, Betsy Dalrymple to unveil the generous donation to Jamestown Public School teachers and administrators at the Inservice program held at the High School this morning.

“We at Nash Finch and Hugo's are so proud to be able to support the already tremendous fundraising efforts Jamestown has initiated to support the Imagination Library,” said Alec Covington, CEO of Nash Finch Company. “This important program is vital to the current and future health of the community and aligns with our values and hopes for the generations to come.”

Every year before the beginning of the new school year, Jamestown Public School teachers and administrators gather at the Inservice program in the High School auditorium to discuss important topics such as professional development, school improvement and self-funded insurance programs. Today, Covington presented an oversized check of $20,000 to the Jamestown Public School Foundation under a giant 800-balloon archway, which symbolized the approximate number of Jamestown public preschoolers now able to enroll in the Imagination Library program because of the Nash Finch and Hugo's donation.

“It's always exciting and very rewarding when you can do something that has an impact in the community you serve. We feel so privileged to be part of Jamestown and offer this assistance to the local school system,” said Kristi Magnuson, President of Hugo's.

“The promotion of early literacy is a target area for the Jamestown School District and we are very excited about this generous gift from Nash Finch to help the community of Jamestown support the Imagination Library,” said Robert Lech, Superintendent of Schools, Jamestown Public School District. “Our hope is that, through the Imagination Library, we can encourage parents to read to their children and help to instill a lifelong love for literacy. Imagination Library is an initiative that we are very passionate about and would be much less successful without this donation from Nash Finch.”

Nash Finch Company is the second largest U.S. wholesale food distributor to retail grocery stores, including Hugo's Marketplace, and have been dedicated to supporting education funding in local communities for many years with the Our Family Labels for Learning program. Designed to help students and education organizations by providing tools for success, the Labels for Learning program is another way the Jamestown community can continue to support child literacy efforts.

Alec Covington continues, “Our Labels for Learning program can further supplement this fundraising effort for Imagination Library and together we can advance educational opportunities for students in our local schools.”

Imagination Library is sponsored nationally by the Dolly Parton Foundation and was recently brought to Jamestown by The Jamestown Public School Foundation in May 2013 after they raised $20,000. Every child enrolled in the program receives an age-appropriate book each month for one year at no cost to the parents. For more information visit Imagination Library online at usa.imaginationlibrary.com.

About Hugo's Family Marketplace
Hugo's Family Marketplace is a family owned and operated chain of supermarket grocery stores with 10 locations across North Dakota and Minnesota. The company was founded by Hugo and Dorothy Magnuson in 1939 in Grand Forks, ND and is still headquartered there today. Hugo's takes pride in bringing the finest shopping experience to their customers, always giving extra personal service while also offering quality, selection and customer value in the grocery, meat, frozen food, specialty items, floral and deli departments. For more information visit www.gohugos.com.

About Nash Finch Company
Nash Finch is a Fortune 500 company and the largest food distributor serving military commissaries and exchanges in the United States. Nash-Finch's core businesses include distributing food to military commissaries and retailers located in 44 states, the District of Columbia, Europe, Cuba, Puerto Rico, the Azores, Bahrain and Egypt. The Company also owns and operates a base of retail stores, primarily supermarkets under the Family Fresh Market®, Econofoods®, Family Thrift Center®, No Frills®, Bag 'n Save®, AVANZA®, and Sun Mart® trade names. Further information is available on the Company's website, www.nashfinch.com.