Press Release
The 30th annual National Association of Letter Carriers Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive will take place nationally and in Charleston on Saturday, May 14th. This event is the largest one-day food drive in the country.
On Saturday, May 14th, more than 100 Lowcountry Food Bank staff and volunteers will be on hand at each local post office throughout the Charleston area to meet 495 local letter carriers who will bring in food throughout the day from their daily routes collected from household mailboxes.
Volunteers will be at post offices across the area to offload and sort the food donations. The Lowcountry Food Bank anticipates this year’s Stamp Out Hunger food drive will collect more than 115,000 pounds of food that will be distributed back into the community for those who are food insecure.
Food insecurity rates in the 10 coastal counties of South Carolina served by the Lowcountry Food Bank remain higher than pre-pandemic levels at 11.4%, which equates to more than 160,000 of our neighbors, of whom 45,540 are children. Many of our neighbors are still recovering from economic effects of the pandemic, and our community can make an impact on May 14 with a food donation.
In 2019, the most recent in-person Stamp Out Hunger event, 115,756 pounds of food was collected for the tri-county area, which created 96,465 meals for food insecure children, seniors, and families.
“Stamp Out Hunger comes at a critical time for us,” said Nick Osborne, President and CEO of the Lowcountry Food Bank. “The need for food assistance increases as we approach a time of year when food donations are low, and children who rely on free or reduced price school meals do not have access to them during the summer,” he said. “Food prices, gas and utility costs are high this year and vulnerable members of our community feel the financial strain of feeding their families.”
Household members can leave shelf-stable food near their mailbox in a bag and their letter carrier will pick it up. If your home has a community mailbox bank, donations may be left there. LCFB cannot accept items in glass jars nor homemade, canned items.
In addition to donations, LCFB needs volunteers to sort donated food at participating post offices. Visit the Lowcountry Food Bank website Volunteer Page to sign up for a shift. LCFB encourages the Charleston community to share Stamp Out Hunger information on their own community social media platforms and newsletters. Monetary donations are also encouraged to help offset increased LCFB food costs and support LCFB procurement of fresh produce, protein and dairy products for our food-insecure neighbors.
