Seven Roundy’s associates and two Roundy’s teams were awarded the Wisconsin Grocers Association Supermarket Hero Award at recent ceremonies. Brandon Scholz, WGA president and CEO, presented the wards.
The award recipients were among 20 grocery industry employees/teams to be honored with the WGA Supermarket Hero Award for their outstanding work throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The WGA considers all grocery, logistics, warehouse and other supply chain workers heroes for their outstanding efforts in keeping Wisconsinites fed throughout the pandemic,” Scholz stated. “The WGA Supermarket Hero Award is meant to honor those select individuals and teams who went above and beyond during the pandemic. We’re honored to recognize Roundy’s employees with this award and salute them for their operational excellence.”
Roundy’s celebrated seven individual Supermarket Hero Award winners and two team award winners. Zach Jorgenson, Nicole Schroeder, Sarah Manthey, Emily Ash, Julie Belden, Ryan Streich and Jeff Smuda received individual Supermarket Hero Awards. The Roundy’s Wisconsin Pharmacy Team and Roundy’s Wisconsin Distribution Center in Oconomowoc received team awards.
“Throughout the pandemic, the grocery industry has worked hard to provide food for our communities while focusing on shopper and associate safety,” said James J. Hyland, Roundy’s VP of communications and public affairs. “We appreciate the WGA recognizing the work of our industry and for honoring the Roundy’s teams and individuals with this prestigious award.”
Supermarket Hero Award winners:
Zach Jorgenson: Deli manager at the Oak Creek, Wisconsin Pick ‘n Save, Jorgenson was instrumental in keeping deli operations running after a coworker self-reported a positive COVID-19 diagnosis. He worked tirelessly to manage the deli department and provide superior customer service until the quarantine was over.
Nicole Schroeder: She was the store director of the Kenosha, Wisconsin, South Pick ‘n Save during the height of the pandemic.
In August of 2020, civil unrest hit the streets of Kenosha, and a curfew was enacted. Residents flocked to grocery stores to restock their food supplies. Schroeder kept open lines of communication and ensured the community that the store would stay open while many businesses in the area closed.
Sarah Manthey: She is an assistant store leader at the Oshkosh, Wisconsin, South Pick ‘n Save. Throughout the pandemic, Manthey acted as an optimistic leader who was able to guide her fellow employees through the stresses and frustrations of the pandemic. Her consistently friendly and positive attitude was a shining light for the store team.
Emily Ash, Julie Belden, Ryan Streich, Jeff Smuda: The four work together in the Madison-area store district. Recognizing a great need, they donated more than $3,000 of their personal funds to purchase groceries from Roundy’s for the River Food Pantry Lunch Munch program. Additionally, Ash and Belden volunteered their time to buy, bag and deliver groceries to Madison-area families facing food insecurity during the pandemic.
Roundy’s Wisconsin Pharmacy Team: The team partnered with the federal government and Wisconsin health officials to administer and provide accessibility to the COVID-19 vaccine. To date, Wisconsin pharmacy teams have administered more than 110,000 COVID-19 immunizations through Roundy’s network of 67 pharmacies throughout the state.
The pharmacy team administered free drive-thru COVID-19 testing in Milwaukee and Kenosha to thousands of Wisconsin residents and administered more than 38,000 flu shots and over 21,000 COVID-19 antibody tests throughout the pandemic, all while tending to the everyday health and needs of their patients.
Roundy’s Wisconsin Distribution Center: During the height of the COVID-19 crisis, while much of the state was ordered to stay home, Roundy’s Distribution Center associates worked tirelessly to move approximately 2.2 million cases of product each week. The transportation and logistics teams sent more than 200 trucks per day to keep Roundy’s Wisconsin store shelves stocked.
During a four-week period early in the pandemic, DC associates shipped 162 million pounds of food, a feat that could only be accomplished through teamwork and a commitment to excellence. What could have been a logistical nightmare was avoided as DC associates worked around the clock to keep Wisconsinites fed.
The Supermarket Hero Awards were created by the WGA, which represents more than 60,000 people working in the grocery industry throughout Wisconsin, including grocery store employees, producers and workers in warehouses and the supply chain.
Pick ‘n Save/Metro Market are Wisconsin grocery banners of Roundy’s Supermarkets Inc. Roundy’s is a wholly owned subsidiary of The Kroger Co., operating 106 stores throughout Wisconsin under the Pick ‘n Save and Metro Market banners.
