Carriers pick up more than mail Saturday
By By Steve Gillespie/The Meridian Star
May 11, 2001
Letter carriers in Meridian will be picking up more than just mail Saturday. They will be gathering canned food items to help stock some of the community's food closets for the needy.
Meridian residents should have received cards in their mail promoting the National Association of Letter Carriers' Food Drive which is set for this weekend.
Members of the community are asked to bag non-perishable food items and place them by their mailboxes for letter carriers to pick up Saturday. Food collected in Meridian will be delivered locally to Wesley House, the Salvation Army and South Harbor Shelter.
Mike Lundstrom, vice president of the National Association of Letter Carriers, said this is the fourth year the drive has been held in Meridian.
Sponsored by Campbell's Soup and Priority Mail, the food drive yielded 64.2 million pounds of food for the needy last year. According to Lundstrom, several thousand pounds of food is collected from Meridian residents during the drive each year.
Lundstrom said the drive is held in late spring because it is a time when food banks across the country are traditionally in the most need.
Steve Gillespie is a staff writer for The Meridian Star. Call him at 693-1551, ext. 3233, or e-mail him at sgillesphie@themeridianstar.com.