Letter Carriers will be picking up food donations on May 11, 2024.
Organized by the National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC), the Stamp Out Hunger food drive is in its 32nd year. It is the largest one-day food drive in the country. Food collected in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties stays here, helping to feed those who are struggling with food insecurity in our community.
This year, residents in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties can participate by leaving non-perishable food donations at their mailboxes on Saturday, May 11, for their letter carriers to collect. Donations will benefit local food banks and pantries in both counties, helping to ensure that families in need have access to nutritious food.
"People right here in our Northwest Florida community – your neighbors and mine – are struggling every day to put food on the table. They do not have enough money to pay their bills and buy healthy groceries for their families,” said DeDe Flounlacker, Executive Director of Manna Food Pantries. “The Stamp Out Hunger food drive makes it possible for Manna and many of the area’s food pantries to feed thousands of children, senior citizens, veterans, families, and individuals in need in the months to come.”
Residents are encouraged to leave a bag of healthy, non-perishable food items, such as canned fruit in 100% juice, canned mixed vegetables, canned chicken, canned tuna, dry breakfast items (oatmeal, whole-grain cereal), peanut butter, and/or dry beans.
Residents should NOT donate items in glass containers or items that have been opened or homemade.
Local food donations will benefit individuals and families served by Manna Food Pantries, Feeding the Gulf Coast, ACTS Ministries, We Care Ministries, and Warrington Emergency Aid Center. Last year, Escambia and Santa Rosa letter carriers collected 190,853 pounds of food from generous residents, providing over 219,862 meals!
“We are so thankful to the National Association of Letter Carriers and our community for their support through this annual food drive. This food will greatly help our one in seven neighbors struggling with hunger,” says Michael Ledger, President & CEO of Feeding the Gulf Coast. "Feeding the Gulf Coast has distributed more than 5.7 million meals into Santa Rosa and Escambia Counties to address the increase in need over the last year. Food drives such as Stamp Out Hunger make an incredible impact in helping the food bank and its partners provide steady, nutritious meals to the hard-working families and individuals in our community.”
Residents of the two-county area will receive a Stamp Out Hunger postcard reminder in the mail, as well as a bag to fill with donation items. For more information about the annual Stamp Out Hunger food drive, please visit nalc.org/community-service/food-drive, or for our local drive visit www.uwwf.org/soh.
Several partners are assisting the NALC in the food drive: the United States Postal Service, the National Rural Letter Carriers’ Association (NRLCA), the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW), Valpak, United Way, the AFL-CIO, CVS, Kellogg’s and Vericast.
