2011 Letter Carriers' Food Drive
We are proud to partner with Letter Carriers, Food Bank of Northern Indiana, Krogers, Martins, and AFL-CIO Community Services for this year's 19th annual National Letter Carriers Food Drive, the nation's largest food drive to combat hunger.
On that day, letter carriers will collect non-perishable donations from homes as they deliver mail along their postal routes.
You are encouraged to leave a sturdy bag containing non-perishable foods, such as canned soup, canned vegetables, canned meats and fish, pasta, rice, cereal, or other dry/packaged goods next to your mailbox before the regular mail delivery on Saturday, May 14.
If every home would give something we could reach our community’s goal of 200,000 lbs.
The NALC National Food Drive is held in 10,000 cities and towns. Carriers last year collected a record 77.1 million pounds of food donations along their postal routes -- pushing the total to more than one billion pounds for the food drive, which began in 1992.
As the letter carriers start toward the two-billion-pound mark, NALC President Fredric V. Rolando emphasized that there has never been a greater need for a successful drive. About 50 million Americans live in families that lack sufficient food. One of every three -- 17 million -- is a child. Locally, in 2009, 17.4% of our county's population did not know where their next meal was coming from.
The St. Joseph County letter carriers will collect the donations and take them to the Food Bank of Northern Indiana, a United Way partner agency.
Become a Volunteer:
Before the Drive
- Send out a blast to friends and co-workers to remember to get their bag of food at their mail box.
- Contact United Way for grocery bags to hand out at work the Friday before the drive.
- Hold a kick off food drive at work and challenge a neighboring organization to see who raises the most pounds!
- Call United Way for posters to put up at work, church, and neighborhood centers!
- Tell your letter carrier that you really appreciate this event they do each year!
Day of the Drive:
- Work at the Food Bank of Northern IN unloading donations and get food credits for a community Food Pantry.
- Work in your neighborhood, assisting your letter carrier in transporting donations to the nearest Post Office or to the food bank. This is a great opportunity to work with your kids and grandkids. You drive, they collect!
Contact Dawn Chapla at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or (574) 232-8201, ext. 228 to sign up to volunteer or for more information.
2010 Letter Carriers' Food Drive
The National Association of Letter Carriers Food Drive took place on May 8th. Here in St. Joseph County, an estimated 11,000 pounds more than the 2009 total was collected. Each year, UWSJC partners with Plymouth and Culver for this initiative, and with early numbers in, totals are approaching 114,000 pounds of food donated!
Based on research from the Brookings's Institute and Feeding America, 114,000 pounds of donated food equals approximately 261,043 meals. The food collected this weekend by the wonderful letter carriers in our region will supply the community's pantries for up to 6 weeks.
Special thanks to Kroger and Martin's for their donation of bags and to Kevin Strebinger, the Letter Carrier Chair.
For more information, visit HelpStampOutHunger.com.
