The National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC) will conduct its 21st annual food drive, called Stamp Out Hunger, to combat hunger and food insecurity this year on Saturday, May 11. On that day, letter carriers will collect non-perishable donations from customers as they deliver mail along their postal routes. Help your neighbors in need and those struggling to make ends meet by leaving non-perishables by your mailbox on Saturday, May 11. All donations in New London County will go to the Gemma E. Moran United Way/Labor Food Center, located in New London. The Food Center provides food to nearly 100 feeding sites throughout the county including shelters, soup kitchens, food pantries, child care programs, community meal sites, and programs for the elderly. The 300,000-member National Association of Letter Carriers, which represents city delivery letter carriers in all 50 states and U.S. jurisdictions, conducts the world’s largest one-day food drive each year on the second Saturday in May. Primary co-sponsors of the drive are the U.S. Postal Service, United Way, the AFL-CIO, and Feeding America. In 2012, the drive collected 40,744 pounds of food in New London County. Nationally, the drive collected 70.5 million pounds of food and it was the ninth consecutive year above 70 million pounds. All post offices within New London County participated in the drive. Feeding America estimates that 1.3 pounds of food is equal to one meal. That means that the local 2012 drive could be translated into a donation of approximately 27,085 meals! The drive never has been more important than in these times, when hunger is a growing problem, affecting about 50 million people around the country, one-third of them children. In New London County, about 10,000 children, or one in every six, are food insecure. Since 1988, the Gemma E. Moran United Way/Labor Food Center, located in New London, has played a key role in providing one of the building blocks to a good quality of life by feeding food insecure individuals and families all across our community. The Food Center provides food and household items to nearly 100 free food distribution sites throughout New London County. These sites include shelters, food pantries, after-school programs, day care centers, community meal sites, and programs for the elderly. In 2012, the Food Center distributed 2,163,423 pounds of food which is equivalent to 1,664,171 meals. Food provided through the Food Center helps to feed 20,000 people each month. The Gemma E. Moran United Way/Labor Food Center is an official Partner Distribution Organization (PDO) with the Connecticut Food Bank in East Haven, the largest food bank in the state, to provide a product allocation based on poverty levels as determined by the census. In 2013, the Food Center celebrates its 25th Anniversary of alleviating hunger and helping those is need in New London County.
