Saturday, May 10 marks the 33rd anniversary of the largest one-day food drive in the nation – the National Association of Letter Carriers' Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive. Unfortunately, local participation in the event has dwindled in recent years.
Brenda Sutton of the Pierce County Food Pantry says the nationwide event used to be one of the biggest influxes of donations t0 the food pantry, but “the last time it amounted to anything more than two or three bags was a few years ago.”
Each year on the second Saturday in May, letter carriers across the country collect non-perishable food donations in bags hung from customers’ mailboxes. These donations then go directly to local food pantries to provide food to people who need it.
“It used to be one of the biggest times of the year,” says Sutton. “But times change and people change.”
Over the course of its more than 30-year history, the drive has collected well over 1.9 billion pounds of food, thanks to a Postal Service universal delivery network that spans the entire nation, including U.S. territories like Puerto Rico, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Currently, more than 44 million Americans are unsure where their next meal will come from. More than 14 million are children who feel hunger's impact on their overall health and ability to perform in school. Nearly 5.5 million seniors over age 60 are food insecure, with many who live on fixed incomes often too embarrassed to ask for help.
Organizers highlight the food drive's crucial timing. Food banks and pantries often receive most of their donations during the winter holiday seasons. By springtime, many pantries are depleted, entering the summer low on supplies at a time when many school breakfast and lunch programs are not available to children in need. Participating in this year's Letter Carriers’ Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive is simple. Just leave non-perishable food donations in a bag by your mailbox Saturday, May 10, 2025, and your letter carrier will do the rest.
“The people of Blackshear used to give freely,” says Sutton, who hopes this year’s food drive will be a return to the generosity of previous years.
