Help ‘Stamp Out Hunger’ this Saturday

Before you head outside to enjoy the beautiful spring weather on Saturday , don’t forget to help your mail carrier fight hunger in Central Oregon. This Saturday , May 9 th , is the national Letter Carriers’ Stamp Out Hunger Food drive.

The drive has delivered more than a billion pounds of food over the past 23 years across the United States.

“Central Oregon is a generous community and nearly half of the food collected each year by NeighborImpact is sourced locally – the largest percentage of any community in Oregon,” says Sandy Klein, food resource specialist for NeighborImpact.

About 55,000 pounds of food was donated last year and all the food collected stays in Central Oregon and is processed through NeighborImpact’s regional food warehouse in Redmond.

To donate, just leave a sturdy bag containing non-perishable foods such as canned soup; canned vegetables; canned meats and fish; pasta; peanut butter; rice or cereal next to a mailbox before the regular mail delivery this Saturday .

“NeighborImpact tends to see a decline in food donations through the summer months, so this food drive allows us to feed families until the holiday food drives begin in early winter,” explains Klein.

The NeighborImpact Food Bank Program is the regional affiliate of the Oregon Food Bank and distributes over 2.6 million pounds of food to 40 local agencies in Crook, Deschutes, and Jefferson counties. Over 19,000 individuals are helped at emergency food sites every month during the year.

NeighborImpact is a “21 Cares for Kids” partner.