Country Fair's Community Blog

Makeover Home Revealed - ErieTube Video - Erie, PA's Video Web site

2009-07-02T22:00:00.002-04:00

A great video that shows the BIG reveal and the photos of the transformation from start to finish.

Makeover Home Revealed - ErieTube Video - Erie, PA's Video Web site

Shared via AddThis

Today is the Day!

2009-07-02T10:07:00.006-04:00

Finally! After 106 hours, over 200 daily volunteers, infinite amounts of Roaster's Cup coffee and Country Fair spring water, Clara Ward's house is finally ready to be returned to her today. Only it won't be her old house, but an immaculate new house for her to start her new life with a renewed hope for her mission.

The rain today will not stop the presentation to Ms. Ward and her family, who have been resting comfortable in Disney World Orlando for a much-needed vacation. The presentation of the keys to Ms. Ward is scheduled to occur between 1:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. today. I hope Ty brings an umbrella!

Country Fair is flattreed to have been asked to be participant in what will surely be oen of the most positive events to happen in our community in a very long time. A time where this community could really use some hope.

I have posted a few more photos on our Flickr Web site. Check it out for some of the newest pictures of the brand new house and some of the work that has been done to neighboring houses.

Check them out at:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/39942229@N02/?saved=1

The End is Near...

2009-07-01T13:54:00.006-04:00

What a difference a few days makes! Clara Ward's house was just demolished on Saturday and just a few short days later a miraculous transformation has taken place on the site where an old house once stood.

Not only are the volunteers and Maleno Construction crew building Ms. Ward's house, they are also landscaping the surrounding neighbors' yards in efforts to transform the entire neighborhood! Workers continued to persevere through thunderstorms and flooding that took place in the Erie area yesterday. Nothing is going to stop them from finishing this house!

Today, plans are to decorate and move furniture into the home, then turn the keys over to producers for the BIG reveal tomorrow. You too, can be live at the new house to hear Ty Pennington shout "MOVE THAT BUS" tomorrow. An itinerary of events is posted below:

MOVE THAT BUS!

8 a.m.
Spectators are highly welcomed and encouraged all day today. If you want to get a good view and witness the famous “MOVE THAT BUS!” when the family arrives and the design team welcomes them into their new home, you need to arrive early.

10 a.m.

Arrival time is encouraged for spectators who want to be part of “MOVE THE BUS!” Don’t forget your positive signs welcoming the family home. Please keep in mind that this day will be long period of standing, so please plan accordingly.

1 p.m. to 3 p.m.

Join thousands of supporters as Ty Pennington and the design crew welcome the family home. MEDIA AND COMMUNITY ARE WELCOMED AND ENCOURAGED! Be on site to witness the now famous “MOVE THAT BUS!” when the family sees their new home for the first time!

PLEASE NOTE: Time is subject to change.

Photos from the Demolition

2009-06-29T09:49:00.005-04:00

Good morning!

Several volunteers took photos to document the events from the weekend. The Country Fair event trailer led the caravan to the Extreme Makeover site to provide breakfast and lunch to the crew. Several of our vendors, along with Country Fair volunteers served the cast and crew from 6:30 a.m. until early afternoon.

These shots are just a few photos from the day. The remainder will be posted at:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/39942229@N02/

Keep checking back for new photos and updates!

Ty drinking Country Fair spring water. :)

Paige Hemmis signing autographs.

The House is coming down!

Braveheart March a Success

2009-06-28T22:24:00.004-04:00

Saturday morning, several of our employees and vendors volunteered to participate at our event trailer which was used to provide breakfast and lunch to the hungry crew at the Extreme Makeover home build. According to several participants, the collaboration between our employees and vendors was a success! Paul Rankin, our Vice President of Sales and Marketing, gives a first-hand account of the events:

I was on the Extreme Makeover site this morning. Roaster's Choice and Country Fair water were the preferred beverages! All the stars and all the volunteers were carrying either Roaster's Cup coffee or Country Fair water. Special thanks to McCormick's John M., his wife and Tony, who were there working on the equipment. The Krispy Creme donuts were well stocked and everything was well represented, both in the worker and VIP tent areas. Our banners look great behind them.

The project appears to be several hours behind schedule, as one of the pre-cast foundation pieces fell off a truck on its way to Erie from Pittsburgh last night. There were innumerable volunteers working on other houses in the neighborhood, including working on yards, residing houses, and re-doing some of the interiors. It is a huge project!

I saw several of the Country Fair family including Joe S., his wife Sue, and their family with Gabriella and Alexis. Karen R. and Michelle, Brody and her mom were also there. The Maleno family and several of the production workers thanked me on behalf of Extreme Makeover and all the work that the Country Fair volunteers did yesterday manning our event wagon and support vehicles and for the great job that you did during the Bravehearts March. I understood that it had five takes and everybody was extremely hungry when it was over.

Tony from McCormick Coffee said that he introduced Guy to Mike Gallagher of Channel 24 and they were on the 11 pm news talking about the project. He said that it came out well with the Country Fair banner in the background. Again kudos to all who were involved. Sounds like you did a tremendous job and it was very appreciated! I've got a fair number of pictures from today, and I hope that we can get them all loaded on the website tomorrow.

Again, thanks to all.
Paul

The Volunteers are Chosen!

2009-06-26T10:00:00.002-04:00

Several of our employees have expressed interest in volunteering for the Extreme Makeover project, 80 to be exact, and listed below are the 15 names drawn randomly:

Karen Rizzone
Mike Jara
Jaramie Parrish
Tim Hawk
Judi Roberts
Judi Baginski
Kelly Blaney
Vickie Morse
Heather McKee
Michelle Ferrie
Stacy Kline
Lane Vecellio
Kelly Weiser
Deb Knapp
Jessica Philson

Our Director of Human Resources, Steve Seymour coordinated the volunteers. For those of you who were not chosen, we will keep your names and contact you if any more volunteers are needed for this tremendous project.

Thank you to everyone who volunteered!

The Before Photo

2009-06-25T13:48:00.002-04:00

From GoErie.com:

When the build is complete we will compare the before and after photos, I'm sure it will be an amazing transformation! For all of the details of the chosen family, see the post below.

The News is Out!

2009-06-25T13:36:00.004-04:00

The family has finally been chosen! See the press release below for all of the details:

“Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” Extends a Helping Handto a Remarkably Resilient Woman Who Opens Her Heart and Home to Her Neighborhood’s Disadvantaged Children

On June 25, “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” traveled to Erie, Pa., to meet the indomitable Clara Ward, who has cast the adversity of her health and surroundings aside to run a nonprofityouth development and family center from her home.Team leader Ty Pennington, his designersand hundreds of volunteers will rebuild Clara’s home in seven days, enabling her to continue her big-hearted work in support of the neighborhood’s underprivileged children.

Having experienced a childhood of hardship, Clara vowed to make a difference for the next generation. Neither modest means, nor the challenges of Myostenio Gradi, a degenerative muscular disease, have stopped her so far. For decades, Clara has put her personal needs second to feeding, clothing and nurturing children in her home, organizing charitable drives, arranging field trips, tutoring, giving cooking lessons and much more.

But the rampant disrepair of her crumbling two-story home -- including a cracked foundation, a leaky roof, peeling walls and a faulty sewage line -- increasingly threatens the life-long mission that means so much to Clara and the people in her neighborhood. Furthermore, the house lacks the wheelchair accessibility she needs, requiring her to stay with her daughter and head back and forth each day.

While the “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” team, local builder Maleno Development, workers and volunteers rebuild Clara’s home, the Ward family will go on vacation to Walt Disney World.

The design team for this episode of “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” will feature team leader Ty Pennington and designers Paul DiMeo, Paige Hemmis and Grammy-Award-winning, R&Brecording artist, Mary J. Blige.

The location address is: The Ward Family, 650 East 21st Street, Erie, Pa.

“Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” is broadcast with Spanish subtitles via secondary closed captioning. ATV parental guideline will be posted closer to airdate.

ABC Media Relations: (Los Angeles) Jonathan Hogan (818) 460-7016
(New York) Mozell Miley-Bailey (212) 456-6444

Photography is available at http://www.abcmedianet.com/ or at (818) 460-6611

About ABC-TV’s “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition”

"Extreme Makeover: Home Edition," which has won back-to-back Emmy Awards as Best Reality Program(non-competitive), is entering its 7th season on ABC. The program is produced by Endemol USA, a division of Endemol Holding. Anthony Dominici is the executive producer; and David Goldberg is the president of Endemol USA. The show airs Sunday from 8 to 9 p.m. ET on ABC.

About Maleno Development

Co-founded in 1976 by John Maleno and his wife, Lynn, Maleno Development began as a husband-and-wife building and remodeling operation in Erie, Pa. Since then, the company has built more than 1,000 homes and apartments in their hometown. Maleno Development has changed the face of many Erie areas by creating beautiful neighborhoods and residential communities on otherwise undeveloped lands. What started with the Calico Fields subdivision off of West 38th Street now includes 13 residential developments. Today, five of John Maleno’s seven children, his sister and his son-in-law are part of what is now a full-service real-estate team that specializes in construction, land development, property management and real-estate sales. For more information about Maleno Development, visithttp://www.malenodevelopment.com/.

GoErie also has an article about the reveal at:

http://www.goerie.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090625/NEWS02/306259861

When scheduling becomes available we will be sure to post. Congratulations to Clara Ward! Her story is inspirational.

Event Receives National Attention

2009-06-24T10:51:00.002-04:00

The publication, Convenience Store News has picked up our story in their national publication. See the story online at http://www.csnews.com/csn/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003986670 or see the reproduction below.

CSNews Exclusive: Country Fair Helps Family Get 'Extreme Makeover'
By Barbara Grondin Francella

ERIE, Pa. -- The team at Country Fair Inc. and a number of its vendor partners are throwing themselves into a recent episode of "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition," providing products and services for the production of the popular television show as it arrives in the chain's hometown this week.

The c-store operator will be providing its proprietary Roaster's Cup coffee, fresh-brewed on site, and private-label bottled water to cast, crew and approximately 1,000 volunteers 24 hours a day during the weeklong production. Details are still in flux as the production gears up and Country Fair employees wait until Thursday, when one lucky local family gets the famous "knock on the door" letting them know they have been selected to receive a new home.

"We are in a bit of a holding pattern right now," Stephen Seymour, director of personnel for the 75-store chain, told CSNews Online. "We can't go into motion until they knock on that door. The location is still mystery. It's exciting!"

This Saturday, during "tear down" day, Country Fair's promotional "Weenie Wagon" concession trailer and a caravan of supporting vehicles will be at the project site before 6 a.m., offering proprietary Roasters Cup coffee, cappuccino and hot chocolate, and doughnuts for the roughly 600 people on hand. That afternoon, Country Fair will serve lunch, including hot dogs, chips, ice cream and beverages.

July 2, is "Move that bus!" day, the climatic house reveal. But Country Fair's eventual participation began six months ago, when the producers of "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" came to the Erie, Pa., market to scout possible locations and contractors. On June 8, Country Fair was contacted by Maleno Construction, the local builder who is providing the new home. June 11, they had their first meeting.

"We really ramped up fast," noted Guy Strayer, director of foodservice. "Soon after our first meeting, we committed to providing six pallets of bottled water—more than 250 cases—and to be the exclusive provider of coffee. By the day after we were the exclusive provider of hot beverages for the commissary tent for all of the volunteers This is a great opportunity to get our branded product out into the public in a new way. Our employees will be on hand, making sure the equipment is working and the product is served correctly. We'll be fully engaged the entire process."

Vendors participating with Country Fair include McCormick Coffee, which is setting up the equipment and providing the coffee and cappuccino; Krispie Kreme; Smith Provision Co. (hot dogs); Meadow Brook (cold beverages); Troyer Farms (chips); Tripifoods; JeriLu (fresh cut produce); and Perry’s (ice cream). "These vendors jumped at the chance to participate," Seymour said.

Country Fair's Advertising Manager Shannon Warchol is producing a daily blog at http://cofaircommunity.blogspot.com, detailing the experience of the retailer's 50-plus employee volunteers and others involved in the week's activities.

The Infamous "Knock on the Door"

2009-06-23T15:56:00.005-04:00

Thursday is the big day! A family in Erie, Pa. will get the surprise of a lifetime and open the door to an ABC camera crew and be whisked away to a vacation destination to await their newly constructed home. There have been many whispers in the community about who the family may be and where they live. Has anyone heard anything about the secret? Thursday we will post the information and learn the details that we have all been waiting for. How exciting for Erie!

For More Information

2009-06-22T08:23:00.000-04:00

Good morning!

I just posted a new link to the Maleno Development's Extreme Makeover Web site.

http://www.malenoextremehome.com/

This site has a great deal of information, including schedules, photos, and general information about the build.

Have a great week!

The secret is out!

2009-06-22T08:20:00.001-04:00

Colleagues, Family and Friends,

Greetings! I wanted to take this opportunity to introduce a development that, Country Fair, along with several of our vendor partners, have been working diligently to assemble.

Just a few short weeks ago, in mid-June, Country Fair was asked by Maleno Construction to participate in a thrilling opportunity. We learned the ABC show Extreme Makeover: Home Edition would be gifting a new home to a local family and filming the process in our hometown of Erie, Pa. Maleno Construction, a local family business, has been contracted as the construction company handling the entire building process and all of the details surrounding the event. Country Fair was asked to support our community in a way we have never been asked to before. Country Fair will be the exclusive provider of our newest food service offering, Roaster’s Cup® Coffee. This coffee will be freshly brewed on site for the cast, crew and volunteers during this tremendous effort, 24-hours a day throughout the entire event. McCormick Coffee is working side-by-side with Country Fair to ensure a smooth brewing process and the freshest product. Country Fair will also supply nearly 6,000 bottles of their own label spring water which will be essential during the sizzling June building process.

Several of our vendor partners were quick to join Country Fair to support our community in this unique opportunity. McCormick Coffee, Smith Provision, Meadow Brook, Troyer Farms, Tripifoods, Perry’s, Krispy Kreme and Jerilu will all be present at the week-long event to volunteer their time and products in support of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Throughout the week-long event (June 25 - July 2), volunteer opportunities for Country Fair staff members may be available. If you are interested in volunteering your time, you can contact Steve Seymour in Human Resources at ext. 287.

We look forward to keeping you informed during this remarkable opportunity and ask that you share in the experience by following the process here on our blog where we will update regularly with photos, interviews, and information.

Thank you,
Shannon

Hello!

2009-06-19T14:41:00.000-04:00

Thank you for visiting our Country Fair Community Blog. We will soon be updating this space with exciting news for our Country Fair friends and family. Check back soon for updates!

Thank you,
The Co-Fair Courier