With help from a local food pantry and letter carriers, the Apopka-area community will participate in a national food drive that will assist people struggling with hunger.
On Saturday, May 11, The National Association of Letter Carriers’ 27th annual Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive will take place across America.
In Apopka, all the food collected by letter carriers will stay local. The local post office will deliver donations to Loaves and Fishes to help Apopka families in need.
In 2018, Apopka-area letter carriers collected over 19,880 pounds of food and delivered them to Loaves and Fishes.
To donate, residents should place their non-perishable food items in a bag near the mailbox for a letter carrier to pick up.
The top requested non-perishable food items are:
• Cereal
• Pasta
• Canned spaghetti sauce (no glass jars)
• Canned fruits and vegetables
• Hamburger Helper
• Canned meals
• Peanut butter
• Macaroni and cheese
• Canned meat and beans
• Packaged crackers
• Snack bars
Community members should make sure all items are not expired and should not donate frozen food, homemade food or home-canned items, or food in glass jars.
Celebrating its 35th year in service, Loaves and Fishes serves the Apopka area. The pantry receives no government funding and is primarily supported by churches, schools, businesses and organizations in the community.
Currently Loaves and Fishes provides assistance to 250 families with a weekly bag of food, and monthly toiletry and household products. Approximately 7,000 food items are distributed weekly to the families. In addition, the pantry is helping over 30 qualified homeless clients with bagged lunches and toiletry bags.
For more information about Loaves and Fishes, visit www.loavesandfishesapopka.com. To learn more about the Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive, go to www.nalc.org/community-service/food-drive.
The Apopka Chief and The Planter are weekly community newspapers, independently owned and family operated, that have served the greater Apopka area in Central Florida since 1923 and 1965 respectively.
