Get Your Food Donations Set for Letter Carriers Drive Saturday

[Omaha Steve]

http://blog.aflcio.org/2007/05/10/get-your-food-donations-set-for-letter-carriers-drive-saturday/

Get Your Food Donations Set for Letter Carriers Drive Saturday

by Mike Hall, May 10, 2007

On Saturday, May 12, you can help combat hunger by simply going to your mailbox, not with a check, but with non-perishable food donations that your letter carrier will pick up as part of the 15th annual food drive sponsored by the National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC).


Donations will be collected in more than 10,000 communities and distributed to food banks, pantries and shelters in your local area. Since 1993, the NALC food drive has collected more than three-quarters of a billion pounds of food. That’s 765.5 million pounds, to be exact, to help feed hungry families.



For the past three years, the letter carriers have collected more than 70 million pounds each food drive day.


NALC President William Young says the annual food drive comes at a critical time for many families relying on school meal programs to make sure their children receive proper nutrition. With schools soon letting out for the summer, those meal programs are suspended until September. He also notes:

Letter carriers see these families every day as they deliver the mail. The food drive is one way we can help alleviate their plight, and we encourage our local postal patrons to participate by leaving donations by their mailboxes May 12.

Be sure to set your non-perishable items—such as canned meat, tuna, soup, cereals, pasta and rice—in a bag by your mailbox before your carrier arrives Saturday.

[grilled onions]

1. And Let's Not Forget The Need Is Year Long....

...Also things that most people don't even realize are needed because they are not "eaten", things like toothpaste,toothbrushes,soap are not cheap to begin with but when you are trying to stretch those food dollars things like dental care may get pushed aside only to rear its ugly head when tooth decay requires attention.
Our local dollar store carries 8 oz tubes of toothpaste for $1 as well as toothbrushes. A twenty dollar bill can go far in helping a food pantry offer at least an item or two for those who require such products.

[napi21]

2. Is this being done everywhere? I haven't heard anything until today,

and it was on DU that I heard about it. I would like to participate, but I feel pretty stupid putting a bag of food out at the mailbox, only to have the carrier come to the dorr and ask "What am I supposed to do with this"?

[Donnachaidh]

3. I haven't heard of this either

And quite frankly, my letter carrier is a JERK.

Is there a website? I don't have a problem giving, I'd also rather not have this guy giving ME grief if he hasn't heard of it.

[Omaha Steve]

4. National drive link

http://www.nalc.org/commun/foodrive/

Please think of those that don't have enough to eat, I'm sure you will take the risk. Last year the Letter Carriers Collected 70.5 Million Pounds In Nation’s Largest Anti-Hunger Food Drive

[blondie58]

5. I apologize on behalf of my co-worker

I am an active carrier (Nalc Branch #47)
and the behavior of some of these guys is horrendous. I am embarrassed to be associated with some of them.

You could bring it to the P.O., if it is not far- otherwise, you can leave it by your box and hopefully not have to deal with him.

[Donnachaidh]

11. thank you for the apology blondie

I do appreciate it.

:hug:

[postulater]

6. My wife had ours hooked to the mailbox tonight

Thanks to the postal workers.

[dragonlady]

7. There's also a need to have people sort the food

Last year our local Democratic party signed up to help sort the food, and a few us showed up at our assigned post office. There were people from several organizations, all ages. As the carriers drove up with the bins of food they had collected, we took out all the items and sorted them into huge cardboard boxes (like the ones the watermelons are in at the grocery store). Some of the food had to be tossed because it was damaged or homemade or something. (That was very sad... you could just imagine a nice old lady donating the jelly she had worked so hard to make and hoped a less fortunate family would enjoy, but the food agency can't take the chance.) By the end of the day, a semi trailer was filled with boxes stacked two or three high.

I was told that the timing of this food drive was because the letter carriers get into every neighborhood and get to see how people live. They noticed that a lot of mothers were having a hard time feeding their families, so the drive coincides with Mother's Day to help them out a bit.

[blondie58]

8. that and the fact that so many kids get their decent meal at school

so during the summer, they don't get that one good meal. This really helps. The food banks supplies are depleted this time of year. This will help tide them over until the Christmas donations. Thank you everyone.

[RamboLiberal]

9. I have my bags ready

Thank you to the letter carriers - you're forgiven for the few times you misdelivered my mail or gave me my neighbor's mail. :toast: :patriot:

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

10. The bag is on the porch, ready to be picked up.

I just wonder how they are going to carry all that stuff in those little bitty trucks they drive.

[Omaha Steve]

12. Our goods were taken without a hitch

We put them in our over sized mail box with the outgoing flag up. It was that easy.