Area letter carriers' association gathers items to aid in food drive

Dave Sutor, The Tribune-Democrat, Johnstown, Pa.
·2 min read

May 14—JOHNSTOWN, Pa. — Along with performing their usual duties of picking up and dropping off the mail, National Association of Letter Carriers' Branch 451 members also gathered nonperishable food during their Saturday rounds.

Local residents were encouraged to leave items, such as canned and dried goods, near their mailboxes.

"It's just a great way for us, as carriers, to give back to the community, helping the community, but the community also helping their friends and neighbors," said Tim Maris, president of Johnstown-based Branch 451. "With one in eight Americans facing food insecurity, you're talking veterans, and elderly and children. It's definitely a good thing to have."

Branch 451 collected the food as part of the Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive, a joint initiative by the NALC, United States Postal Service and National Rural Letter Carriers' Association. More than 1.8 billion pounds of food have been donated across the country since the program started in 1993.

In 2019, the most recent year the drive was done locally due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, Branch 451 collected approximately 60,000 pounds, according to Maris.

This year's volunteers sorted the harvest at the John P. Murtha U.S. Army Reserve Center. The food was then distributed to nine pantries throughout Cambria and Somerset counties.

"I think every food pantry needs help in the area," said Dave Rager, president of Interfaith Community Food Pantry in Nanty Glo. "We're not an exception."

The Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive not only benefits those in immediate need, but helps pantries over the longer term, too. "Every time there's a drive, that's money that we don't have to spend obviously, so that makes our resources go further," Richard Von Schlichten, director of the St. Clement Food Pantry, said.