Jodi Hoffman loads her shopping cart with meats during a one-minute shopping spree at AG Foods on Monday. The young mother of two children almost didn’t enter the Great Grocery Giveaway this year because of the time involved to submit entries. Now she says she’ll keep entering. (Richard McGuire photo)
Jodi Hoffman almost didn’t enter the Great Grocery Giveaway contest at AG Foods, but she decided to give it one more year.
It paid off, as the young Osoyoos mother, who is currently off work on maternity leave, was able to fill the freezer with meats from a one-minute shopping spree on Monday.
“I wasn’t going to enter these grocery store contests anymore because they take a little bit of time,” she said, referring to the need to complete entry forms and go online.
“I guess I’m going to have to keep doing it now,” Hoffman said, as she wheeled a cart full of $420.41 in free groceries to the checkout.
Like other shopping spree contestants this year and previous years at AG Foods and Buy-Low Foods, she headed straight for the meat section.
“I knew I needed chicken breasts because we eat a lot of chicken in our house,” said Hoffman, who has two young children and a husband to feed. “That was my main thing. And just getting some of the more expensive meats. It’s usually the thing that you spend the most money on shopping.”
Although contestants at Buy-Low Foods have used Osoyoos Coyotes to run for them this year and last, Hoffman was happy to do her own running.
“I stay pretty active,” she said. “That’s not a problem.”
RICHARD McGUIRE
Osoyoos Times
