Waiting in a long line in the wee hours of the morning with her five children wasnโt on Jessica Herbertโs to-do list on Feb. 19.
Checking out the grand opening of the new Earth Fare grocery store, however, was.
Instead of lining up in the dark, which more than 100 eager shoppers did, she and her children rolled out of bed at their usual time โ around 6 a.m. โ and left their Meadow Pointe home at 6:45 a.m.
They missed the band, the cheerleaders and the ribbon cutting. They werenโt the first, 10th or 100th people through the doors.
However, for Jessica and her kids, their timing turned out to be impeccable. Of all of the gift cards handed out to the new storeโs first 500 visitors by Earth Fare, Jessica got the most valuable one: $1,000.
Jessicaโs mouth dropped wide open, then formed into a wide smile as she looked back incredulously at friends who were in what was, by then, a quickly moving line.
โYes, really,โ she said, holding out the card for them to see. โWow!โ
Her smile was contagious and was shared by her excited kids: Addison, 12, Kate, 10, Clay, 8, Jackson, 5 and 3-year-old Brooke.
โMy kids were mad that I dragged them out so early,โ Jessica said. โThey thought we were only going to get a $5 gift card.โ
Grabbing a $5 gift card actually was Jessicaโs goal. She confesses to briefly thinking about the possibility of landing the big prize, but of course, she didnโt think it would happen.
โMy goal was to get at least $5 to buy my kids some muffins for breakfast,โ she said.
Feeding five kids an organic diet can be pricey, so the gift card will come in handy for Jessica.
โWith five kids, thatโs definitely a lot of food that we need, so we could definitely use this,โ she says. โItโs nice to know that now, we can buy healthier ingredients for our family.โ
Asked whether the kids would be getting a special treat for bringing a little luck to mom, Jessica chuckled and said, โI think weโre going to get something,โ as Addison and Kate grabbed onto her to drag her into the store.
Sheโs Number One!
Velaina Clayart wasnโt quite as lucky โ her gift card was for only $25 โ but as the first shopper in line, she received lots of attention and a goody bag from the store, which she promptly shared with those in line behind her.
A Dade City resident, Clayart says that she arrived at around 1 a.m., set up her white plastic chair and quilt and killed time by gazing at the full moon and walking around looking at all of the adjacent new construction.
โIt was a little lonely at first,โ she said. โBut, as people showed up, I would seek out conversation. I made some friends today.โ
Why 1 a.m., which turned out to be a few hours before the next people in line? Clayart says thatโs what her research told her.
โI watched every single grand opening that Earth Fare had posted on the internet, and one of them over on east coast said two women had gotten there at midnight and they were all by themselves up until about 3 a.m.,โ Clayart said. โI couldnโt sleep because I was so excited. I got in my car at midnight and made my way here nice and slow.โ
Clayart also said that she is fascinated by all of the growth in Wesley Chapel, and wanted to be part of a grand opening. She also says she lives an organic lifestyle, and is pleased to see a store offering such a large variety of healthy products within a short drive from her home.
And, she enthusiastically clapped and sang along with the cheerleaders from Cypress Creek High School, excitedly talked to passers by, cheered when Earth Fare CEO Frank Scorpiniti presented the New Tampa Family YMCA with an oversized check for $3,000 and shouted out the ribbon-cutting countdown with Pasco County District 2 Commissioner (and Wesley Chapel resident) Mike Moore.
โ3โฆ2โฆ1โฆโ