Wawa Opens 250th FL Store In St. Petersburg

ST. PETERSBURG, FL — Wawa celebrate the grand opening of its new St. Petersburg location — its 250th store in Florida — on Thursday. The new store is at 5390 66th Street N.

General manager Casey Arrowood was joined by local first responders and other members of the community to count down to the moments when the store opened at 8 a.m., according to a news release from the company.

The first 250 customers to walk through the door on Thursday received a limited-edition t-shirt that read “Wawa Coffee, Hoagies, Kindness.”

All customers can enjoy free coffee through March 19, the company said.

During the store’s opening, Wawa also presented a check for $7,450 to Feeding Tampa Bay from a $25,000 grant dedicated to food banks across Florida.

Wawa also recognized local first responders with its signature Hoagies for Heroes hoagie-building competition. First responders from the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office, the Lealman Fire District and the St. Petersburg Police Department were each presented with a $2,500 check for the charity of their department’s choice for participating in the contest.

“At Wawa, our core purpose is fulfilling lives every day, and since our first store opened, we’ve believed that we all have a role in making this world a better place,” Chris Gheysens, Wawa’s CEO, said. “Our associates deliver experiences and often create emotional connections with customers that go beyond what traditionally happens in a retail environment, and we look forward to welcoming old friends and making new ones in this wonderful community!”