By JAMES BELL
Hays Post
Wrapping up their annual Heart 2 Heart campaign managers and staff at Dillons, 1902 Vine, braved extreme cold as Valentines day approached to deliver 4,282 roses to area residents living in nursing homes and other care facilities.
"This year has been a pretty tough year, and it really means a lot to be able to give a rose to some people in the rest home and other areas that just need a smile and to brighten their day," said Brad Richmond, store manager. "Sometimes they don't get a chance to see family, so we are just very thankful for our customer base."
For every paper rose purchased at Dillons earlier this month, a single-stem red rose was delivered to local organizations from stores across the region, the company said in a recent announcement.
All roses typically stay in the communities where purchased, but Richmond said this year so many donations came in at the Hays location there were also delivering to locations in surrounding communities.
"We are delivering to the surrounding communities also, Victoria, Plainville. Ellis, La Crosse, which also represents our customer base so we are just very thankful for our customers' generosity," Richmond said.
Since the collection drive began in late January, more than 45,600 roses have been donated by Dillons’ customers, across the company.
“The teams at Dillons are so excited to share a little cheer this Valentine’s Day with Heart 2 Heart,” said Sheila Regehr, Dillons spokeswoman. “Quite often, it’s the little unexpected things that can bring so much joy, especially at times like these. That’s what makes Heart to Heart so special. Over the next few days, we will have teams of Dillons’ cupids running throughout Kansas sharing a friendly smile and a whole lot of love. Heart to Heart is made possible by the generosity of our Dillons customers. … They are simply the best.”
Other locations in the region also saw impressive donation numbers for this year's program.
In Great Bend 1,384 roses were donated, in Larned, 481, and in Salina 1,874. Eight hundred were donated in Colby.
"We are really thankful for the community's generosity," Richmond said. "It's their money that we collect that enables us to get these roses to people."
