December 07, 2023
Christopher Willard/ABC
'The Bachelor' star Joey Graziadei is appearing at a toy drive at Collegeville Bakery on Monday from 6-8 p.m. People who donate an item will get to greet him.
The new season of "The Bachelor" premieres Jan. 22 with Montgomery County-native Joey Graziadei in the dating show's namesake role.
Before Graziadei's journey for love begins, fans can meet him during a toy drive at Collegeville Bakery in Montgomery County on Monday from 6-8 p.m. Each person who brings a new, unwrapped toy will have the chance to chat with the reality TV star.
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The items collected will be donated to Daily Bread Community Food Pantry, a nonprofit in Collegeville. The drive is being held in memory of the bakery's late co-founder, Caterina Crispino Della Polla.
"Please be as generous as possible and think of the cool toys kids in your life would love," the bakery wrote on Instagram. "Our heartfelt thanks to Joey for giving of his time, and going along with our idea, to give back to his hometown. This is one amazing young man and we are forever grateful for his support."
Graziadei grew up in Collegeville, a borough located about 30 miles from Center City, and later attended West Chester University, where he played tennis. After college, he spent time working as a tennis instructor in Hawaii before embarking on his journey for love on Season 20 of "The Bachelorette."
With his earnest charm and good looks, Graziadei became a fan-favorite. He found a rapport with lead Charity Lawson, but he left heartbroken when she chose to accept a proposal from Dotun Olubeko instead.
Graziadei's hometown was spotlighted on "The Bachelorette" when he took Lawson on a tennis date. Now, the town likely will take on a more central role when Graziadei leads "The Bachelor." The show filmed a segment at Collegeville Bakery back in September.
"This is his time to shine and we want to make Joey proud and 'The Bachelor' proud that his hometown is backing him up on this," Steve Carcarey, a co-owner of the bakery, said at the time. "This national spotlight is going to be on Collegeville, which is fantastic."
Portions of the Collegeville Bakery segment, along with some footage of Philadelphia, appeared in the Season 28 trailer released last week.
Graziadei has been gearing up for his starring role with several TV appearances in recent months. He made a cameo during the Oct. 19 episode of ABC's senior-citizen dating show "The Golden Bachelor," which also featured contestant Susan Noles of Delaware County. Last month, Graziadei was a special guest at Philadelphia's Thanksgiving Day Parade.
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