This Saturday marks the largest single day of giving of the year, in the United States. That is when the U.S. Postal Service will collect food donations, right at your mailbox. The National Letter Carriers Association is holding its 24th annual event. Americans gave 77 million pounds of food, last year, including 226,000 pounds in northern Nevada.
"It's very rewarding," Martha Pelino, USPS Letter Carrier said. "It's for the young and old. We take food for infants, for dogs because people have pets and if you can't feed your family, you're not going to feed your pets."
Pelino has been a part of every Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive. She says it is one of the easiest ways people can donate food. A plastic bag will come in the mailbox, Thursday or Friday. Residents can fill that bag, or any bag, with non-perishable food and leave it at their mailbox.
"We take it back to the post office and they have big tubs that we load them into, and a big truck takes them to the food bank," Pelino said.
Pelino expects to fill her van at least a couple times this Saturday. It comes at a time when holiday food collections are running low.
"This is when we're looking for food donations," Lantrip said. "So it's a perfect time of year, and honestly, the need for emergency food services are still very high in our area."
Lantrip says the Food Bank of Northern Nevada serves 103,000 people every month, despite the improving economy.
"We're finding that a lot of people are either working part-time or they're making minimum wage and they're just not making enough to make ends meet," Lantrip said.
Officials say some residents have been reluctant to leave food donations at neighborhood group mailboxes, but say the food will be safe at those places, too.
"If you just leave it underneath the mailbox, that's fine," Pelino said. "We'll pick it up or someone comes around. We have a lot of volunteers that day, that come around and pick up your food."
Some of the volunteers are families, including children.
"People bring their kids," Pelino said. "Their kids help and it's a way for the kids to learn how to give to their community."
While food donations are encouraged, residents should check the expiration dates on the containers.
"We get a lot of expired food from this food drive, and people just don't know that it doesn't expire and we can't use it," Lantrip said.
The Food Bank of Northern Nevada is also asking for the community's help to sort the food, once it arrives at its warehouse. Volunteers will begin sorting the food, Tuesday, May 16. You can find more information on volunteering at their website, fbnn.org
