The largest one-day food drive in the country will be held Saturday as letter carriers in more than 10,000 cities and towns, including those in the East San Gabriel Valley, deliver donations from their customers to their respective post offices for distribution to various charitable organizations.
It is the National Association of Letter Carriers’ 22nd annual Stamp Out Hunger drive in which carriers collect non-perishable food donations left next to mailboxes. After the donations are unloaded at post offices, representatives from local food banks, pantries and shelter transport them to their headquarters for distribution to the needy.
One of the charities that benefit from the drive in La Verne and Claremont is Sowing Seeds for Life, a La Verne-based pantry which provides food and services to some 6,000 people per month.
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Heading up the food drive in La Verne and Claremont is Tony Mazuca, the head steward to the local chapter of the letter carriers union. Among those assisting him is his wife Linda. Both are La Verne letter carriers.
“Our letter carriers devote a lot of their own time to this food drive,” Mazuca said. “And picking up all the donations is a lot of extra work. They do this to help those in need.”
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Nationally, the drive brings in about 70 million pounds of food annually and since its inception the total is more than 1.2 billion pounds.
Vicki Brown, the CEO and founder of Sowing Seeds for Life, said: “It’s just amazing how much food is collected. “It shows just how generous people can be and also shows what good people our letter carriers are. Tony Mazuca and his wife Linda deserve a lot of credit as the organizers of the drive in La Verne and Claremont.”
In recent years, Glendora resident Chris Roberts, the longtime radio voice of UCLA football and basketball, has served as a spokesman for the local drive. His father was a postal worker, as was his uncle and grandfather.
“This is a great cause and something close to my heart,” Roberts said. “I’m glad to help out in any way I can. I just wish my father was around to get involved as well. He would have loved this.”
The U.S. Postal Service and Campbell Soup Company are major supporters. Other supporters are AARP, Feeding America, Publix, Valassis/Red Plum, Cox Target Media and Valpak Direct Marketing Systems.
The drive also relies on the backing of the National Rural Letter Carriers Association, the Feeding America food bank network, the United Way of America and its local United Ways, the AFL-CIO Community Services network, Uncle Bob's Self Storage and countless local sponsors.
To donate, just place a box or can of non-perishable food next to your mailbox before your letter carrier delivers anytime this week prior to mail delivery on Saturday. The carrier will do the rest.
With more than 50 million people facing hunger every day in America, including nearly 17 million children, this drive is one way you can help those in your own city or town who need help.
The Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive has received a number of accolades over the years, including two Presidential Certificates of Achievement.
