Postal Service Prepares For Record-Breaking Year for NALC Annual Food Drive

Letter Carriers to Help Stamp Out Hunger! On May 10, 2008 with Nation’s Largest Food Drive that Helps Millions of Americans

DALLAS, TX — On Saturday, May 10, Dallas City Letter Carriers will again help Stamp Out Hunger! across America with your help.  Now in its 16th year, the Stamp Out Hunger! effort is the nation's largest single-day food drive, with letter carriers having collected more than 836 million pounds of food from postal customers since its inception. Locally, Dallas District collected more than 960,000 pounds last year and is slated to hit the 1 million mark this year.  All donations are delivered to community food banks, pantries and shelters.

Supporting the USPS-National Association of Letter Carriers with the food drive again this year are Campbell Soup Company, America's Second Harvest - the Nation's Food Bank Network at the North Texas Food Bank, Valpak - Cox Target Media, the AFL-CIO and United Way of America.

To help Stamp Out Hunger! in Dallas and surrounding cities this year, participants simply leave a sturdy bag containing non-perishable foods, such as canned soup, canned vegetables, pasta, rice or cereal next to your mailbox prior to the time of regular mail delivery on May 10.  Food items should be in non-breakable containers, such as boxes and cans.  Local letter carriers will then collect donations from homes across the city and deliver them to North Texas Food Bank.

"Hunger continues to be a vital concern in the United States," said William H. Young, NALC president.  "We see it in our everyday lives and on many of the routes we walk every day. Yet with donations from our generous customers and partners like Campbell Soup Company, Kroger Foods, and local food banks, who we've now been working with for over 10 years, I know we can help a significant number of people fight the battle against hunger."

THE FACE OF HUNGER
According to America's Second Harvest - The Nation's Food Bank Network, more than 35 million people are food insecure, hungry or at risk of hunger.  Approximately one in four people in a soup kitchen line is a child.

FACTS
Last year, the NALC Food drive collected 32 million pounds of food.  North Texas Food Bank distributed this food to 764 feeding and education programs in 13 North Texas counties, including after-school programs, residential treatment programs, food pantries, emergency shelters, soup kitchens, senior citizen centers and low-income daycare centers.

"Postal carriers are a vital thread in every community throughout the United States. That is why our response to this socio-economic need is so extremely important," said Pat Williams, Dallas Postmaster with the U.S. Postal Service.  "Our goal this year is to collect more than 1 million pounds and our carriers are committed to exceeding this goal to answer the call to STAMP OUT HUNGER! We are counting on the community to help us Stamp Out Hunger! by filling up the sack on Saturday, May 10th!"

For more information about the annual Stamp Out Hunger! effort in your community, ask your letter carrier, contact the post office or visit www.helpstampouthunger.com. For media, please contact www.stampouthunger.info/partner.