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HOWLEY BREAD GROUP, A LOCAL FRANCHISEE OF PANERA BREAD, ANNOUNCES 2ND QUARTER 2015 EMPLOYEE AWARD WINNERS

Lincoln, RI, September 11, 2015 — Howley Bread Group, a local franchise of Panera Bread, held its “Summer Olympics” - themed Leadership Meeting recently at Dodd Stadium in Norwich, Connecticut where a number of its employees were recognized for excellence and leadership for the second quarter of 2015. This special employee event featured a number of games designed to foster team building among the Panera bakery-cafe staff. The Howley Bread Group, based in Lincoln, Rhode Island, owns and operates twenty-eight Panera Bread bakery-cafes in Rhode Island, Southeastern Massachusetts and Greater Hartford/Eastern Connecticut markets.

The following received company-wide awards:

• Anthony Lalima of Norwich, CT was named “General Manager of the Quarter” for exhibiting his superb leadership and management skills at the Foxwoods, CT bakery-cafe.

• Earning “Baker of the Quarter” honors was Sara Stannard of North Branford, CT for her willingness to help in any way as a baker at the Newington, CT bakery-cafe.

• “Manager of the Quarter” went to Brendan McKibbin of Vernon, CT for the

professionalism and enthusiasm he provides while assisting in the management of

the Newington, CT bakery-cafe.

• Panera’s “Catering Coordinator of the Quarter” went to Ashley Martinez of Berlin, CT for energizing the catering business at the Southington, CT bakery-cafe.

• Nikki Denlinger of Wakefield, RI earned the “Associate of the Quarter” for making customer service a natural part of her work day and leading by example at the Wakefield, RI bakery-cafe.

• “Shift Supervisor of the Quarter” was presented to Lindsey Vaillancourt of

Wethersfield, CT for her leadership and organization at the Bristol, CT bakery-

cafe.

• “Cafe of the Quarter” was awarded to Lincoln, RI for its outstanding operations.

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Page 2/Panera/HBG Announces Second Quarter 2015 Employee Award Winners

The following were named “Associate of the Quarter” for their respective cafes:

Name Bakery-Cafe Hometown

Salina Launh Cranston, RI Cranston, RI

Megan Podgorski East Greenwich, RI Warwick, RI

Sherri Pollard Lincoln, RI North Smithfield, RI

Cheryl Andrada Newport, RI Newport, RI

Diana Hatch Providence, RI Providence, RI

Cynthia Johnson Smithfield, RI Smithfield, RI

Nikki Denlinger Wakefield, RI Wakefield, RI

Barbara Boudlais Warwick, RI East Greenwich, RI

Maddison Paquette N. Attleborough, MA Attleboro, MA

Meaghan St. Jacques N. Dartmouth, MA New Bedford, MA

Abigail Ismail Plainville, MA North Attleboro, MA

Sue Wroblinski Seekonk, MA Barrington, RI

Sydney Vanasse Bristol, CT Bristol, CT

Essence Little Buckland Hills, CT Hartford, CT

Meghan Talbot Canton, CT Burlington, CT

Shayna Jones Enfield, CT Enfield, MA

Monica Martinez Farmington, CT West Hartford, CT

Darline Betancourt Foxwoods, CT Groton, CT

Joan Santacroce Glastonbury, CT Hartford, CT

John Caulkins Groton, CT New London, CT

Tina Zemke Southington, CT Meriden, CT

Brandon Guitierez (State House) Hartford, CT Wethersfield, CT

Diana Dontello Lisbon, CT Canterbury, CT

Tien Nguyen Manchester, CT South Windsor, CT

Luis Filet Newington, CT New Britain, CT

Michael Kochol West Hartford, CT New Britain, CT

Trevor Tricou Waterford, CT Groton, CT

Cathy Lee Williams Wethersfield, CT East Hartford, CT

• The “Engagement” Awards were presented to associates who demonstrate a sense of empowerment and a positive attitude about their job, colleagues and customers while putting their own special signature on their work each day. They also consistently go beyond what is required. Winners were Nikki Denlinger of the Wakefield, RI cafe who also lives in Wakefield, RI; Abigail Ismail of the Plainville, MA cafe who resides in North Attleboro, MA; Nicole Smith of the Manchester, CT cafe who calls South Windsor, CT home; Barbara Bryant of the Waterford, CT cafe who resides in Norwich, CT; and Essence Little of the Buckland Hills, CT cafe who resides in Hartford, CT.

All the Panera Bread bakery-cafes are open for breakfast, lunch and dinner and offer a variety of menu items, including breads and bagels, breakfast sandwiches, creative lunch and dinner sandwiches, pastas, hand-tossed salads, homemade soups and a variety of espresso beverages. Panera Bread Catering also caters and delivers its full menu to any occasion at the office or home. The breakfast, lunch and dinner assortment is sure to impress every time. For a Panera Bread Catering menu and more, please visit a cafe or www.paneracatering.com.

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Page 3/Panera/HBG Announces Second Quarter 2015 Employee Awards

Howley Bread Group, LTD of Lincoln, RI, a Panera franchise, owns and operates 28 bakery-cafes throughout Rhode Island, Southeastern Massachusetts and Greater Hartford/Eastern Connecticut markets. For more information, please visit the company’s web site at www.panerabreadhbg.com. Also, like HBG on Facebook at /howleybreadgroup and follow the company on Twitter @panerabreadhbg to hear about upcoming new and returning menu items, community involvement and events, employment opportunities, their Panera culture and much more!

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