HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. , Oct. 02, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Eckrich®, the makers of naturally hardwood smoked sausage and perfectly seasoned deli meats, partnered with Albertsons, Vons, Pavilions, former professional volleyball player Christopher "Sinjin" Smith, and Operation Homefront, a national nonprofit that serves America's military families, to honor a Garden Grove, California, military family on Saturday.

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/b4d2ea96-52fa-466a-9412-b82cca16dde7.

Eckrich hosted a surprise presentation during the Huntington Beach Airshow to celebrate the Salling family and thank them for their service and sacrifice. Smith joined Eckrich during the ceremony to announce a gift of free groceries for a year to the Sallings from Eckrich, valued at more than $10,000.

Scott Salling served in the U.S. Navy for nearly 10 years as a Cryptologic Technician. During his service, Scott was awarded several medals and ribbons including the Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal and the Coast Guard Special Operations Ribbon. Scott and his wife, Brittany, have been together for nine years and have two children. Brittany is Scott's full-time caregiver and a member of Operation Homefront's Hearts of Valor® program, a network of more than 3,000 caregivers of wounded service members which provides annual retreats, support groups, and online communities.

"This gift of free groceries for one year will help our family immensely," said Scott Salling. "We could not be more grateful for this gift and we would like to thank Eckrich, Albertsons, Vons, Pavilions, and Sinjin Smith for all of their support."

"I believe it is tremendously important to honor those who serve and have served our country," said Smith. "It's been an absolute privilege to join Eckrich, Albertsons, Vons, and Pavilions today to help celebrate the Salling family."

The surprise is part of the ongoing campaign by Eckrich to honor military families through its partnership with Operation Homefront. Now in its sixth year of partnership with Operation Homefront, Eckrich has donated more than $2.5 million to support the organization's mission to build strong, stable, and secure military families so that they can thrive — not simply struggle to get by — in the communities they have worked so hard to protect.

"Eckrich is proud to partner with Albertsons, Vons, and Pavilions to honor this very special military family," said Michael Baughman, Smithfield Foods director of marketing. "The Salling family has sacrificed so much in service to our country, and a year of free groceries serve as a small sign of our appreciation for all that they have given."

For more information about Eckrich, please visit www.eckrich.com or follow Eckrich on Facebook and Twitter. Eckrich is a brand of Smithfield Foods.

Smith is professional beach volleyball player who has won both a U.S. and World Championship. He is also the first beach volleyball player to reach 100 career open tournament wins.

About Eckrich
Founded by Peter Eckrich in 1894, Eckrich has a rich heritage starting from a small meat market in Fort Wayne, Ind. Through it all, Eckrich meats have been recognized for their great taste and supreme quality, craftsmanship, care and pride. For more information, visit www.eckrich.com.

About Smithfield Foods
Smithfield Foods is a $15 billion global food company and the world's largest pork processor and hog producer. In the United States, the company is also the leader in numerous packaged meats categories with popular brands including SmithfieldⓇ, EckrichⓇ, Nathan's FamousⓇ, FarmlandⓇ, ArmourⓇ, John MorrellⓇ, Cook'sⓇ, KretschmarⓇ, GwaltneyⓇ, Curly'sⓇ, MargheritaⓇ, CarandoⓇ, Healthy OnesⓇ, KrakusⓇ, MorlinyⓇ and BerlinkiⓇ. Smithfield Foods is committed to providing good food in a responsible way and maintains robust animal care, community involvement, employee safety, environmental and food safety and quality programs. For more information, visit www.smithfieldfoods.com.

About Operation Homefront
Founded in 2002, Operation Homefront is a national nonprofit organization whose mission is to build strong, stable, and secure military families so that they can thrive — not simply struggle to get by — in the communities they have worked so hard to protect. Recognized for superior performance by leading independent charity oversight groups, 92 percent of Operation Homefront expenditures go directly to programs that support tens of thousands of military families each year. Operation Homefront provides critical financial assistance, transitional and permanent housing and family support services to prevent short-term needs from turning into chronic, long-term struggles. Thanks to the generosity of our donors and the support from thousands of volunteers, Operation Homefront proudly serves America's military families. For more information, go to www.OperationHomefront.org.

Contact:
Hannah Meadors
Breaking Limits for Eckrich
2137 South Blvd., Suite 200
Charlotte, N.C. 28203
Cell: 434-250-4770
E-Mail: hmeadors@breakinglimits.net