To the Editor:

I want to express my heartfelt thanks to the managers and staff at the Food Lion on (U.S. Highway 264 East in Washingtom. On four days of the last two weeks, I met a group of children from Washington Pediatrics at Food Lion to learn about finding healthy options in the store before spending an afternoon cooking. Food Lion staff took time each of those days to give the kids a behind-the-scenes tour of the grocery store filled with fun facts.  Many thanks to Bryan Oesterreich and Priscilla Norman, who did the tours, Keith Askew in the meat department, who stopped what he was doing to talk about his area,and all the others who made us feel welcome. In addition, I want to give a big thank you to store manager Mr. Reggie Beaman, who gave his wholehearted support and generously donated some fruit for the kids to try. I spent about an hour and a half there on each of those mornings, in part with the tours and then time spent on hands-on activities with the kids in the store, and was fortunate enough to get to know many of the staff. All were more than willing to go out of their way to help me.

I am extremely grateful and appreciative.

Thanks for making it so memorable for the kids!

Sincerely,

Andrea Nikolai

Registered Dietitian Nutritionist

Washington Pediatrics