CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA (CVILLE RIGHT NOW) – With the Blue Ridge Area Food Bank serving the largest numbers in its history, they’re celebrating the fact the nation’s largest one-day food drive is happening Saturday.
Saturday is Stamp Out Hunger where the community leaves unperishable food items at their mailboxes for letter carriers to pick up as they deliver the mail to customers.
“Thanks to the generosity of our community, but also thanks to the incredible support that letter carriers provide, they take on so much extra work that day to take everyone’s food from the mailbox that they’ve donated and bring it back to the post office, and really ensure that the food reaches us here at the food bank and ultimately the people that we serve,” BRAFB Food Drive Manager Jennifer Rafter told Cville Right Now.
She called the letter carriers heroes in this effort.
Last year, letter carriers collected more than 92,000 pounds of food in this drive which is enough for 77,000 meals.
All this community support, Rafter noted, helps the 1 in 9 individuals in the area experiencing food insecurity to put food on the table.
The most-needed items include proteins such as nut butters, canned tuna or chicken, or canned or dry beans; staples like low sodium and low sugar canned fruits and vegetables; grains like cereal, pasta, rice, oatmeal, mac & cheese; low sodium meal makers like soup, stews, chili, and pasta sauce; dry herbs and spices; cooking oils; and even non-food items like bathroom tissue, toothpaste, toothbrushes, and soap.
No glass containers are taken because they’re just too easy to break.
Rafter said as they’re serving 171,000 people a month, “As prices for groceries, gas, and housing remain high, we at the food bank really expect more people will need our help in coming months and summer for us is a season when we really tend to see a decrease in food donations from the community.”
So, she said the timing of this time of year going into that dry spell is especially crucial.
Rafter said people can also make monetary donations where the food bank can leverage every dollar to provide up to three meals.
