Greater New Bedford’s Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive Is May 13 [TOWNSQUARE SUNDAY]

This is an early reminder to all residents of Greater New Bedford: please don't forget the Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive on Saturday, May 13.

Victoria Grasela, Vice President of Marketing and Community Engagement at the United Way of Greater New Bedford, said her agency is teaming with the National Association of Letter Carriers for this year's food drive.

She joined Townsquare Sunday this week to discuss the logistics.

"This is a perfect partnership for us," Grasela said. "While letter carriers are doing the heavy lifting and picking up food from the mailboxes, we're behind the scenes at the post office, putting the food in boxes and getting it out to food pantries."

Get our free mobile app

The concept is simple: residents are urged to place a couple of non-perishable food items inside their mail boxes either Friday night or early Saturday, May 13. Letter carriers will pick them up and make sure they get where they need to go.

The Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive began in 1993, and since then hundreds of millions pounds of food have been collected and distributed nationwide.

Grasela said that in 2023, the need is still there, especially in Greater New Bedford.

"When it comes to food security, so many people are faced with making tough choices, some who are still not working to full capacity or are facing other challenges because of COVID," she said.

Grasela said food pantries are telling the United Way that more people are coming in than ever before, and food that the pantries receive from places like the Boston Food Bank is not enough to cover that need.

Townsquare Sunday is a weekly public affairs program heard Sundays at 6 a.m. and 11 a.m. on WBSM.

The program highlights individuals and organizations seeking to make the SouthCoast a better place to live and work.

If you would like your organization featured on Townsquare Sunday, please e-mail the host at jim.phillips@townsquaremedia.com.