Our very own Wawa - founded and headquartered right here in Delaware County - is celebrating a birthday today.
But instead of us showering them with gifts on their 51st anniversary, they've decided to turn the tables, taking up the old adage that it is better to give than to receive.
That's especially true if you're a coffee drinker.
The convenience store chain is celebrating by offering free coffee all day at all of its stores.
Wawa says it's just their way of saying thanks to all of its amazing customers. How thankful are they? The company estimates they will give away about a million and a half free coffees today.
Every once in awhile I take a shot at Wawa. For instance, I still believe there is no more dangerous place in Delco than a Wawa parking lot. That's espcially true for the new "super" Wawas that feature gas stations. You sometimes need eyes in the back of your head to keep from being drilled by cars pulling in and out of those lots.
But woe be to the outsider who takes a shot at our beloved Wawa. Sheetz? Forget it. 7-Eleven? Get real.
Wawa is part of who we are here in Delco.
It was 61 years ago when the Wood family was trying to figure out how to market the milk and dairy products produced at their family farm in Middletown. They opened their first store, on MacDade Boulevard in the Folsom section of Ridley Township, on April 16, 1964. Today they have nearly 700 outlets across the Delaware Valley.
They continue to expand, the most recent being an ambitious plan to have the famous goose fly into Florida for a big expansion. Their birthday is being noticed down there as well.
For you outsiders, here's the secret behind the Wawa mascot. Wawa is the name of the neighborhood in Middletown Township where the company was founded. The town's name is derived from the native American word for the goose that was indigenous to the area.
They may be branching out to the Sunshine State, but Wawa will always be Delco at heart.
Thanks for the coffee, folks.
And yes, we still "gotta havva Wawa."
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