In yet another crowning stroke by the National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC), Wellington this Saturday, May 9, will witness the roll out of its 23rd annual food collection drive, called “Stamp Out Hunger”.

As part of Project Salina, Stamp Out Hunger is the nation’s largest one-day food drive, which covers more than 10,000 cities and towns and is held on the second Saturday of May, every year. Since its inception in 1992, this food drive has collected more than 1.3 billion pounds of non-perishable items to help replenish stocks in food banks and charities, across the US.

The current initiative would see the Sharpsburg Post Office in a fully participating role for the first time. The drive will see letter carriers collect donations of non-perishable food items like canned meat, peanut butter, soup, juice, rice, cereal, pasta, rice and canned vegetables in special blue bags distributed to area residents. They shall do so en route the usual postal routes they take.

Those willing to donate should either leave the bags near their mailboxes by Saturday morning or drop the food items or cash, if they wish to, at the nearest post office on their own, which will remain open from 8 AM to 3 PM. The donators were, however, advised to refrain from donating in glass containers.

To kick off the event, free doughnuts will be offered on Friday morning and free hot dogs will be offered in the afternoon at the Salina Post Office.

A drive of such enormous proportions has been possible only by the combined efforts of letter carriers, postal employees and volunteers. The food collected through the present drive would benefit Salina’s Emergency Aid, along with several local organizations including Coweta Community Food Pantry, Community Welcome House, Angel’s House, Crossroads Church, St. Smyrna Baptist Church and New Hope Baptist.