Published: December 30, 2007 11:26 pm      

ALBION: Waterport woman goes on a shopping frenzy at Save-A-Lot

ALBION — Laurie Frederick had 60 seconds to shop until she dropped.

Sleeves rolled up, feet ready; she zipped around the perimeter of Jerome Pawlak’s Save-A-Lot store in Albion Friday morning intent on filling her cart with as much as possible — her reward as highest bidder for the shopping spree at the Arc of Orleans County Signature Series Dinner and Silent Auction in September.

Her strategy already in mind, she fled to the meat case in the back of the store, stocking up on ham, bags of frozen chicken and anything else she could get her hands on. Shoppers, store staff and family members cheered her on as she rounded the corner, tossing in bags of frozen shrimp by the fistful. (Who wouldn’t?)

The clock ticking, she began her final sprint to the finish line, knocking down a display of cardboard boxes in aisle seven. Not wasting a second, she grabbed bags of broccoli along the way, making it back to the checkout counter just in time.

Her job completed, she leaned against a pile of crates catching her breath, smiling broadly.

“It went by so fast,” the Waterport resident said. “I should have worn short sleeves. … I never thought how heavy that sucker was going to be.”

Denise Withey, Arc community relations specialist, said proceeds from the dinner and auction benefited the Legacy of Love Endowment, a fund that will ensure the not-for-profit organization continues to aid the mentally and physically disabled far into the future.

Pawlak said donating the one minute shopping spree was his wife Teresa’s idea, an Arc Family Services employee. He was on hand at the front of the store announcing the time while Frederick made her mad dash.

“I just saw a blur at the end of the aisle,” Pawlak said. “She did very well.”

Frederick’s mother, Madge Dembski of Waterport, watched as Pawlak started the task of scanning the numerous items in Frederick’s cart. The grand total rolled in at $405.43.

“Shrimp tonight!” Frederick laughed. When asked why she didn’t go straight for the steaks, she said she isn’t “a big beef eater” and that her freezer is already filled with deer venison.

Nearby, Frederick’s cousin, Debbie Heuer of Kent, and her son, Tyler, watched the scene unfold with amusement. Tyler called Frederick “speedy.”

It was Tyler’s involvement with the Arc that inspired her family to attend the annual Signature Series Dinner and Auction to begin with, Frederick said.

She didn’t redeem the shopping spree until now due to the craziness of the holiday season and minor problems with her back.

“I was so nervous. … I never thought I’d do that much,” Frederick said. “Now I have to go home and figure out where I’m going to put all this.”

Contact reporter Nicole Colemanat 798-1400, ext. 2227.