#DelmarPostOffice #NationalAssociationofLetterCarriersStampOutHungerNationalFoodDrive #BethlehemFoodPantry #AliHibbs #SpotlightNews
BETHLEHEM — Every May, letter carriers across America collect food donations from their postal customers for the National Association of Letter Carriers Stamp Out Hunger National Food Drive — the largest one-day food drive in the nation.
In Bethlehem, the Bethlehem Food Pantry, located at Town Hall in Delmar, receives the food collected by mail carriers at the Delmar Post Office. According to Jane Sanders, director of Bethlehem Senior Services and a pantry manager, there were 10,500 pounds of food delivered this year.
Volunteers from the Elsmere Fire Company brought their trucks to deliver the food on Thursday, May 24. Firefighters loaded huge bins of food onto their trucks and hauled them into Town Hall, where 12 volunteers from Senior Services checked and sorted items.
“The Bethlehem Food Pantry is now well stocked with the basics for the next few months,” said Sanders. “This is a community effort and it goes so smoothly due to the volunteers. It saves us hours of time and energy when the Delmar Firefighters bring the food over to Town Hall.”
There are about 55 families of all ages who access the Bethlehem Food Pantry, which is a member of the Food Pantries for the Capital District. Donations of cereal, canned fruits, cleaning supplies and personal care items are always welcome. If you have questions about the Bethlehem Food Pantry, whether it is how to access the service or what food is needed at a particular time, please call the Bethlehem Senior Services Department at (518) 439-4955, ext. 1176.
Led by letter carriers of the NACL, with help from rural letter carriers, other postal employees and other volunteers, the Stamp Out Hunger National Food Drive has delivered more than one billion pounds of food over the past 25 years.
