The Fresh Market will host its 22nd annual “Hope Floats” Sidewalk Sale from Friday to Sunday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. to benefit the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, an organization that funds Type 1 diabetes research.
All 175 of the Fresh Market stores across the U.S. will offer hot dogs, root beer floats and ice cream sundaes, both regular and sugar-free, for a $2 donation, according to a press release.
Gainesville’s Fresh Market is located at 4120 NW 16th Blvd., and all the money raised throughout the three-day sale will be donated directly to the organization.
The Fresh Market’s Sneaker Sale also ends Sunday. Along with the annual Sidewalk Sale and other events, the store sells paper sneakers to raise further money for research, according to the release. The partnership has resulted in about $4 million in 22 years.
Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease that causes a person’s pancreas to no longer produce insulin, a hormone needed to get energy from food, said Candace Monroe, the development manager for the Jacksonville chapter of the diabetes research organization.
The disease cannot be prevented, and there is currently no cure, according to the organization’s fact sheet.
Christopher Arcia, who was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at the age of 6, said the last 15 years have been a challenge.
“Type 1 diabetes can be very hard for anyone, regardless of when he or she was diagnosed with it,” he said. “However, it doesn’t mean that it’s impossible to live with.”
