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<p>Fans of warmer weather will be one step closer to sunny days when the first day of spring hits on March 20, but fans of tasty treats will have a different reason to celebrate the season. Rita&#8217;s Italian Ice will commemorate the first day of spring by giving free Italian ice to all customers who visit during normal operating hours, and the treat will come in a limited-edition cup to celebrate the change of season.</p><p>Rita&#8217;s Italian Ice is also encouraging customers to post a photo to Instagram or Twitter using #RitasFirstDayOfSpring from March 20 to March 25 to be entered to win free Italian Ice for a year.</p><p>The first free Rita&#8217;s Italian Ice first day of spring giveaway occurred in 1992. This year, Rita&#8217;s expects to give out more than 500,000 pounds of Italian ice &#8212; more than the weight of the Statue of Liberty.</p><p>Locally, Rita&#8217;s locations can be found in Kingston (355 Market Street), Scranton (1019 South Washington Avenue) and Dickson City (534 Scranton-Carbondale Highway).</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Rita&#8217;s Italian Ice will celebrate the First Day of Spring by giving away free Italian ice on Sunday, March 20. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/web1__Rita-s-Ice-Products_Group-Shot.jpg</photo0><caption0>Rita&#8217;s Italian Ice will celebrate the First Day of Spring by giving away free Italian ice on Sunday, March 20. </caption0><photoCredit0>Submitted photo </photoCredit0></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><subheadMeta>Rita&#8217;s Italian Ice will offer one free cup to every customer who visits during normal operating hours</subheadMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Gene Axton</p><p>gaxton@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Gene Axton at 570-991-6121 or on Twitter @TLArts</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Free Italian Ice on March 20