The 31st annual National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC) Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive is Saturday, May 13, 2023. This is the country’s largest single-day food drive and it’s so easy to participate! Households place non-perishable food donations in a bag by their mailbox and their mail carrier will deliver all the donations to a local food bank; for Boulder the food bank is EFAA.
The NALC Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive is invaluable to the EFAA Food Bank
In 2022, The NALC Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive brought in nearly 25,000 pounds of non-perishable food donations to the EFAA food bank. That is equivalent to 20,688 meals and is valued at $47,664. This food drive alone represents 35% of the food EFAA receives from all food drives throughout the year – 7x more food than our next largest food drive.
Why your participation matters
Food insecurity is a real issue in our community. Currently, EFAA sees nearly 600 families at the food bank each week, up from 400 families per week during last year’s NALC food drive. Last year, EFAA distributed more than 1.2 million pounds of food worth over $2.3 million. The demand for food is only growing.
With the federal reduction of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program on March 1, families who rely on SNAP, are experiencing an average decrease of $90 per person per month, in food benefits – meaning a family of 4 may have $360 less per month to spend on groceries this year. According to the Colorado Department of Human Services, more than half of Colorado’s SNAP households include children.
Summer months can be the hardest
About 1 in 5 public school students in Bouder Valley are eligible for free or reduced lunch, so when schools close for the summer, many children lack reliable daily meals. Additionally, the majority of food drives happen in the fall and winter months, leaving food banks with fewer resources available to distribute during the summer, when school is out. The NALC Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive donations come at a crucial time, just before school is out, supporting EFAA’s efforts to provide free and nutritious food to families and individuals.
Mark your calendars to participate in the Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive:
- Check your mail: If your letter carrier is participating in the food drive, they should leave a postcard and/or plastic bag in your mailbox.
- Gather Food: Check to see if you have canned goods to donate. Some of our food bank’s greatest needs are canned tuna, soups, canned fruit, dried chilis, masa, cooking oil, vegan and gluten-free snacks, as well as personal care items such as unopened/unused shampoo, toothbrushes, and toilet paper. Items must not be more than one year past the expiration date.
- Leave the food/items by your mailbox. Make sure your bag containing non-perishable food and/or personal care items is next to your mailbox before 9:00 a.m. Saturday, May 13th. Your letter carrier will take care of the rest.
It’s That Easy! We hope you’ll participate and help EFAA Stamp Out Hunger with the NALC!