The National Association of Letter Carriers will host their annual “Stamp Out Hunger” food drive to benefit local food pantries on Saturday, May 14.
“Stamp Out Hunger” is the nation’s largest single-day food drive, but the event has not happened since 2019 as the 2020 and 2021 Stamp Out Hunger food drives were canceled due to COVID-19.
Local residents are encouraged to leave donations of non-perishable food items next to their mailbox in a sturdy box or bag before the time of their regular mail delivery on Saturday, May 14. Local letter carriers through the post office will do the rest.
When your mail carrier comes to deliver your mail, food donations will also be picked up and delivered to the local food pantry.
Donations picked up by the Bolivar post office will be donated to Community Outreach Ministries, which runs the central food pantry for Polk County.
“We are very excited that ‘Stamp Out Hunger’ will be happening again this year,” Micah Titterington, executive director at COM, said in a news release. “This is the largest food drive we will see all year, and it always brings in pallets and pallets of food for us. We had to do without the last two years and spend extra money from our budget for food, so we are glad to see this food drive come back. It especially comes at a good time with rising food prices putting a strain on many family’s finances.”
In addition to donating food, residents can also volunteer at Community Outreach Ministries on Saturday, May 14, or the week after to help sort through the boxes of food donations.
“Stamp Out Hunger” began in 1993 as a way to fight hunger and empower neighbors to help each other. The food drive is held on the second Saturday of May each year. Those with questions about food donations can contact their local post office, and questions about volunteering can be directed to COM at 417-326-2769 or info@bolivarcom.org.
