‘Stamp out hunger’ provides the community a convenient way to participate in a food drive

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) -- 'Stamp out hunger,' the largest single-day food drive in the nation, is happening this Saturday.

The National Association of Letter Carriers and Care and Share Food Bank partner every year to put this event on to help the community.

To participate in this community food drive, simply put a bag of nonperishable food items into, next to, or around your mailbox Saturday morning. Then, your mail carrier will pick it up during their regular service Saturday and bring it to Care and Share at the end of the day.

From there, volunteers will sort through the food Saturday evening.

Last year, Care and Share received almost 50,000 lbs. of donated food through this single-day food drive.

With a 21% increase in families seeking assistance since March, Care and Share hopes to receive even more food this year to meet this need.

"Stamp out hunger has been happening across the country for many decades," Care and Share Chief Operating Officer Shannon Coker said. "We are so grateful that our local letter carriers do this extra heavy lifting because food is not light. So we're so grateful for their partnership and being able to help the community widespread engage in participating in a food drive by making it so convenient to drop that food inside their mailbox."

The drive is held every year in the spring because many schools suspend their breakfast and lunch programs for the summer, leaving millions of kids in need.

"The timing of this is so important," Coker said. "We need folks to remember to take that food to their mailbox before their letter carrier comes to deliver their mail Saturday morning, and it's so great to be able to do that at the convenience of your own home."

You can participate regardless of where you live in the Pikes Peak Region.

Some examples of food to leave out are peanut butter, rice, pastas, cereal, canned tuna or chicken, boxed meals, and packaged snacks.