Letter Carriers drive comes at neediest time of the year
The Community Food Bank of San Benito County is asking residents to put food out by their mailboxes on May 12 when letter carriers will collect donations for the local agency.
The National Association of Letter Carriers hosts the annual food drive each year, which donations going to food banks within the jurisdiction where they are collected.
“We actually had less of a holiday drive than normal so it is hitting us a little sooner this year,” said Mary Anne Hughes, the executive director of the Food Bank. “It is a normal time for us to be tight. Its springtime and people are thinking about other stuff.”
Hughes said the timing of the NALC’s drive is good for the Food Bank as it is a time when donations are low and it can serve as a reminder to residents that families are still in need of food.
“The need is not going away, but it has stopped growing exponentially,” she said.
At the height of the economic downturn, the Community Food Bank was serving 1,600 families. The numbers are down to 1,200, but are still much higher than a few years ago.
“We are serving more families and more seniors,” Hughes said. “It’s fewer individuals, but we are seeing a lot of young people.”
The nonprofit does get a regular influx of fresh produce during the local growing season through the Ag Against Hunger program, which allows volunteers to go through local fields after the commercial harvest and glean produce that is still good to be donated. They will also benefit later this year from donations of produce grown at Comstock Community Farm, which hosted a planting day last weekend.
“They are so supportive of us and do get a lot of that,” Hughes said of the two groups. “But sometimes green isn’t all we need. We need some other stuff as well.”
She said residents can donate nonperishable items through the letter carriers drive and they are especially in need of canned protein items, such as tuna, chicken and beans.
Residents can donate anytime of year directly to the Food Bank, on San Felipe Road, or they can make monetary donations online at http://communityfoodbankofsbc.org/
“We continue to not only feed people but try to feed them as healthfully as we can,” Hughes said. “We try to do our part against malnutrition, diabetes and obesity in our community.”
Letter Carriers food drive
The National Association of Letter Carriers will host its annul food drive May 12. Residents can leave a bag of non-perishable food items near their mailboxes for pick up by the post office delivery employees. The food donated in the San Benito area will go to the Community Food Bank. Details: www.NALC.org.
