On May 10, Join the Letter Carriers and Help ‘Stamp Out Hunger’

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.aflcio.org/Blog/Community-Services/On-May-10-Join-the-Letter-Carriers-and-Help-Stamp-Out-Hunger

05/02/2014 Mike Hall

Update: You can also support the Stamp Out Hunger campaign on Thunderclap.

On Saturday, May 10, you can “Stamp Out Hunger” by joining with the Letter Carriers (NALC) union in its 22nd annual food drive—the largest one-day food drive in the nation. Letter Carriers collected more than 74.4 million pounds of food last year, bringing the 21-year total to 1.3 billion pounds. All you need to do is collect canned goods and dry food, such as tuna, canned meat, soups, pasta, rice and cereal, and leave them in a bag or box by your mailbox. Your letter carriers will pick them up as they deliver your mail.

Donations are given directly to local food pantries. While most food pantries get the bulk of their donations around Christmas and Thanksgiving, the NALC drive is done during the spring, when many food pantries are struggling. Also, since many school meal programs are suspended during summer months, millions of children are left scrambling to find alternate sources of nutrition and the food banks are a vital resource for families in need.

Sign up to receive AFL-CIO Now blog alerts>>


NALC President Fredric Rolando says:

Too many people in this country are still going hungry every day. As letter carriers, we see this firsthand in just about every community we serve. But we aren’t the type of folks who simply move on to the next delivery and hope someone else will do something about it. Instead, for more than two decades now, our members have taken the lead in the effort to help solve this ongoing national problem.

The nation’s labor unions are in full support of the food drive, says AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka:

With America still reeling from devastating unemployment, the 22nd annual food drive comes at a critical time. With the support of unions all across America, the NALC can set a record in collections, helping those who have lost their jobs and the millions more facing economic uncertainty.

After letter carriers pick up your food donations, they will deliver the goods to local food banks, pantries and shelters to help needy families in 10,000 cities and towns in all 50 states and U.S. jurisdictions.

Click here to learn more: http://www.nalc.org/commun/foodrive/index.html

[LiberalElite]

1. I have a

bag ready to go.

[malokvale77]

2. Yes

I've been working on several bags of essentials. Flour, sugar, baking powder, yeast, salt, pepper, oatmeal, cornmeal, baking soda, egg noodles, macaroni, pasta, oatmeal, dried beans, legumes and coffee.

Everybody gives canned goods. I'm thinking of the kitchens that prepare food for many. They need help also.

[BrotherIvan]

3. I did not know about this and now will surely donate

What an excellent idea. It's a great way to connect people and organizations. It may be difficult to get to a place to donate. Yeah for letter carriers!

[theHandpuppet]

4. Thanks very much for the heads up

I missed last year's drive so this reminder is appreciated.