Iowa’s thousands of letter carriers will be doing more than delivering the mail this weekend.
The 25th annual “Stamp Out Hunger” event is Saturday as Iowans are asked to help food pantries in their communities by leaving nonperishable food items by their mailboxes. Webster City postmaster Harley Tapper says there’s a change — for the better.
“This year, we will be delivering both grocery sacks that are sponsored by one of our corporate sponsors, Hy-Vee, along with a postcard reminder,” Tapper says. “That gives people the convenience. They can just put it right in that bag and it’s labeled ‘Stamp Out Hunger’ and they can set it out by the doorstep this Saturday.”
Letter carriers have collected more than one-and-a-half billion pounds of food since the first drive was held in the early 1990s. “It’s a lot of fun to know that you’re helping out your local community,” Tapper says. “People are very generous with their donations and the sacks really help. Instead of just putting out one or two items for the carrier to pick up, they can pick up the sack a lot easier.” Learn more about Saturday’s drive at: www.stampouthungerfooddrive.us
(Reporting by Pat Powers, KQWC, Webster City)