Cracker Jack® will help fund the sports
ambitions of nine Cracker Jill young athletes, feature one award
winner on special-edition bags and donate an additional
$200,000 to the Women's Sports
Foundation
PLANO,
Texas, March 29, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- On the
heels of last year's groundbreaking addition of Cracker
Jill® to the iconic snack brand's roster, today
Cracker Jack® launches the I Am Cracker Jill Award to
champion the dreams and exceptional accomplishments of young female
athletes who are changing the face of the game – one goal, one run
or one point at a time.
Cracker Jill debuted at the start of the 2022 baseball season in
select professional ballparks across the country. Through five
special-edition bags celebrating the diverse women breaking down
barriers and leaving their mark on sports, Cracker Jill's mission
was for more girls and women to feel seen and represented in
sports. Now, in partnership with the Women's Sports Foundation
(WSF), Cracker Jack will choose nine contest recipients to receive
the I Am Cracker Jill Award, along with $5,000 to fuel their sports endeavors.
"Cracker Jill is rooted in the belief that sometimes all it
takes to believe you can do something is to see someone like you do
it first," said Leslie Vesper, vice
president of marketing, Frito-Lay North
America. "This year, we're proud to recognize and support
athletes who are role models on and off the field and who inspire
the next generation of women around the world to dream big."
To inspire girls and young women to apply for the award,
professional soccer player Mallory
Swanson and professional swimmer and 29-time Paralympic
medalist Jessica Long are sharing
their #IAmCrackerJill stories as program ambassadors. These
athletes, along with WSF and WSF Athlete Ambassador, two-time
Paralympic medalist Sophia
Herzog-Gibb, will join the brand in selecting nine Cracker
Jill athletes who demonstrate tenacity and leadership to receive
the I Am Cracker Jill Award. One grand prize
recipient will become the brand's next Cracker Jill character,
designed by Monica Ahanonu, the
trailblazing artist who created the original five Cracker
Jill characters featured on special-edition bags.
"I always wanted to be a soccer player and so much of that
passion and determination came from watching the powerful female
athletes that came before me," said Swanson. "My goal is to make
that same impact on future generations, and I hope my
#IAmCrackerJill story will inspire those athletes to reach for
their dreams."
"We at the Women's Sports Foundation know the importance of
powerful images to celebrate and inspire young girls and women to
reach their potential in sport and in life," said WSF CEO
Danette Leighton. "We are thrilled
to partner with Cracker Jack for a second year and excited to
empower more Cracker Jill athletes, whose stories will encourage
other girls around the nation to keep playing."
The #IAmCrackerJill nationwide contest to identify and spotlight
the inspiring stories of young women and girls is live through
May 16. Female athletes ages 15 to 24
can apply by submitting their stories at www.CrackerJill.com.
Cracker Jill bags will also be available for purchase in select
professional ballparks and in stores across the United States starting this month.
For more information on Cracker Jack and the I Am Cracker
Jill Award contest, follow the brand on Instagram and
Facebook.
About Cracker Jack
Cracker Jack® brand has been an American favorite for over 120
years and is one of many Frito-Lay North
America brands— the $23
billion convenient foods business unit of PepsiCo, Inc.
(NASDAQ: PEP), which is headquartered in Purchase, NY. Learn more about Cracker Jack on
Instagram (@crackerjackofficial_) and Facebook (@CrackerJack).
About Frito-Lay North
America
Frito-Lay North
America, Inc. is the $23
billion convenient foods division of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:
PEP), which is headquartered in Purchase,
NY. Frito-Lay snacks include Lay's® and Ruffles® potato
chips, Doritos® and Tostitos® tortilla chips and branded dips,
Cheetos® snacks, Stacy's® pita chips, PopCorners® popped-corn
snack, SunChips® multigrain snacks and Fritos® corn chips. The
company operates 30+ manufacturing facilities across the U.S. and
Canada, more than 200 distribution
centers and services 315,000 retail customers per week through its
direct-store-delivery model. Learn more about Frito-Lay at the
corporate website, www.fritolay.com, on Twitter (@fritolay), on
Instagram (@fritolay) and on Facebook (Frito-Lay).
About PepsiCo
PepsiCo products are enjoyed by
consumers more than one billion times a day in more than 200
countries and territories around the world. PepsiCo
generated more than $79
billion in net revenue in 2021, driven by a complementary
beverage and convenient foods portfolio that includes Lay's®,
Doritos®, Cheetos®, Gatorade®, Pepsi-Cola®, Mountain Dew®, Quaker®,
and SodaStream®. PepsiCo's product portfolio includes a wide range
of enjoyable foods and beverages, including many iconic brands that
generate more than $1 billion each in estimated annual
retail sales.
Guiding PepsiCo is our vision to Be the Global Leader in
Beverages and Convenient Foods by Winning with PepsiCo Positive
(pep+). pep+ is our strategic end-to-end transformation that puts
sustainability and human capital at the center of how we will
create value and growth by operating within planetary boundaries
and inspiring positive change for planet and people. For more
information, visit www.pepsico.com.
About Women's Sports Foundation
The Women's Sports
Foundation exists to enable girls and women to reach their
potential in sport and life. We are an ally, an advocate and a
catalyst. Founded by Billie Jean
King in 1974, we strengthen and expand participation and
leadership opportunities through research, advocacy, community
programming and a wide variety of collaborative partnerships. From
its inception to Title IX's 50th anniversary in 2022, WSF has
invested over $100 million in these
impact efforts, helping to shape the lives of millions of youth,
high school and collegiate student-athletes, elite athletes and
coaches. We're building a future where every girl and woman can
#KeepPlaying and unlock the lifelong benefits of sport
participation. All girls. All women. All
sports.® To learn more about the Women's
Sports Foundation, please visit www.WomensSportsFoundation.org.
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SOURCE Frito-Lay North America;
PepsiCo