Florida A&M University
Cash registers were ringing and store aisles were filled, as
members of the 220 Quarterback Club took over the new neighborhood Piggy Wiggly
for a shopping event March 29.
The Piggly Wiggly store, which is located next to Florida
Agricultural and Mechanical University (FAMU), replaced the old Harvey’s
Supermarket on South Monroe Street in Tallahassee’s South Side community,
bringing with it 125 new jobs and an assortment of new food options.
Established seven years ago, The 220 Quarterback Club was
created to provide small donations to help diminish a financial deficit in the
FAMU Athletics Department. The group began by making donations to the football
program and grew into providing assistance to the other athletic teams within
the department. Since then the group has
made donations outside sports, including a major contribution to the Marching
“100.”
“This event is the 220 Quarterback Club’s way of giving back
to one of its very own members” said group’s President Eddie Jackson. “Because
of his strong support for FAMU, we felt like this was a good way to give back
to him and the community,” Jackson added.
Moore is a member of the 220 Quarterback Club and like many
others, the FAMU alumnus was glad to see the store finally make its way to
Tallahassee. He called the event “a dream come true”, and as a manager for the
store’s Quincy location he was ecstatic about the decision to come to
Tallahassee.
“The community has really embraced us and showed their
support. We had a super grand opening, and since opening our doors it has been
wall to wall with customers,” Moore said.
The new location hosted its grand opening on March 17. Piggy Wiggly was founded in Memphis, Tenn. by
American grocer Clarence Saunders. The 1916 debut of the store introduced a
first of its kind self-service grocery store that included the very first
checkout stands, individual price marking on store items, and shopping carts.
Today the grocery chain operates more than 600 independently
owned stores in 17 states, primarily in smaller areas and towns across the
Midwest and Southern regions on the United States. Club member Dilcy Hogan called the grand
opening a “proud moment”. As a native of Tallahassee and FAMU alumna, Hogan
says that the opening served as a great moments for many Tallahasseans.
“Our community is known as a family, and to see Ray, a
Tallahassee native, bring a Piggly Wiggly here to his native city is just
phenomenal,” Hogan said.
FAMU alumnus and 220 Quarterback Club member John Haugabrook
said that he was excited when he first heard about the store’s opening. He felt
that it would bring a different feel to the community and provide residents
with an alternative food market.
“It’s very great and different, and it’s a nice place for
the people to go,” Haugabrook said.