Mail Carriers' 'Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive' Is Saturday

Gather up your canned goods! The 26th annual Letter Carriers’ Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive is Saturday, May 12, with all donations going to area food banks.

Participants are asked to set out bags of non-perishable food donations Saturday morning by their mailboxes, but before normal pick-up times.

"The earlier the better! A good rule of thumb is to have the bags by your mailbox by 9 a.m.," organizers said, adding that postal carriers will be delivering and collecting mail as usual, in addition to picking up the donations.

Organized by the National Association of Letter Carriers, Stamp Out Hunger is the country’s largest single-day food drive and is held annually on the second Saturday in May in 10,000 cities and towns in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands and Guam.

Last year, the drive collected 75 million pounds, making it the third-highest total in the event’s history. With help from rural letter carriers, other postal employees and volunteers, the drive has delivered more than one billion pounds of food in the past 25 years, the U.S. Postal Service said.

The most requested food items are cereal, pasta, pasta/spaghetti sauce, rice, canned fruits and vegetables, canned soups and pasta, 100-percent juice, peanut butter, macaroni and cheese, such canned protein as tuna, chicken and turkey, canned or dry beans, oatmeal and canola or olive oil.

Not permitted are frozen, homemade or home-canned food items, or anything expired or in glass containers, according to organizers.

The majority of carriers and post offices join the drive, however the effort is voluntary, so residents may wish to check with their local post offices to confirm participation. Click here to find the phone number for your post office, and ask to speak to the local food-drive person.

If your donation is not picked up Saturday, you can contact your local post office or place donations by your mailbox on Monday, as letter carriers will be picking up missed donations on Monday, as well, the carriers' union said.

Those interested in volunteering with food distribution and sorting, can call their local post offices and ask to speak to the Stamp Out Hunger lead person. Many food banks have a great need for volunteers on drive day, organizers said.

For more information, click here.

AND LET'S NOT FORGET MOM THIS WEEKEND:

• Dining Deals For Mother's Day 2018

• Mother's Day Deals & Discounts On Flowers, Chocolates & More

• Kids' DIY Mother's Day Craft Workshops Coming Up Near You

--Image courtesy of Stamp Out Hunger