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Food Lion Crowns Miss CIAA 2011

SALISBURY, N.C., March 5, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Food Lion crowned Miss Elizabeth City State University, Alana Renee' Simmons, as Miss CIAA 2011 during an awards ceremony today at the Time Warner Cable Arena in Charlotte, N.C.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110305/CL59955 )

The grocer has sponsored the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) Tournament for more than 17 years and is the title sponsor for the ever-popular Miss CIAA scholarship contest. Food Lion also sponsors the 2011 Women's Tournament, which began February 28th and concludes today.

Simmons is from Newport News, Va., and is the daughter of Daniel and Arecila Simmons. She attends Elizabeth City State University where she is a senior majoring in music education with a concentration in piano. Upon graduation, Alana plans to further her education to become a high school guidance counselor. Her ultimate goal is to one day open a community center for children and adults to study the arts at no cost.

As winner of Food Lion's Miss CIAA scholarship contest, she received a $2,500 scholarship.

"It's a sigh of relief," Simmons said shortly after learning of her big win. "All of the girls worked really hard. I'm happy to have won because this scholarship will be a big help in paying for graduate school."

Deborah Scales, Food Lion IT project manager and coordinator of this year's Miss CIAA festivities, said Food Lion sponsors the scholarship contest to promote education in the communities in which it serves.

"We're happy to give the young ladies this opportunity," Scales said. "This year, we also promoted health and wellness especially, and these young ladies represented us in our Health & Wellness Symposium. We want the next group of Miss CIAA scholarship candidates to follow the lead of these future leaders in making sure that we have a healthy, diverse and educated world."

The CIAA is a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division II athletic conference consisting mostly of historically African-American institutions of higher education. Each year, Food Lion contributes more than $300,000 to the CIAA, and a third of that amount goes toward scholarships for deserving students at CIAA schools.

About Food Lion Family

The Food Lion family of banners, based in Salisbury, N.C., operates more than 1,300 supermarkets, either directly or through affiliated entities, under the names of Food Lion, Bloom, Harveys or Reid's. These stores meet local customer needs and preferences for the freshest and best quality products. Food Lion Family employs approximately 74,000 associates in 11 Southeast and Mid-Atlantic states. For more information, visit www.foodlion.com.

SOURCE Food Lion