Stamp Out Hunger 2026
Saturday May 9th Branch 6000 had its 34th Annual Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive. It was not a nice day as the weather did not cooperate with us. It was a rainy, nasty day but you, the letter carriers, did your part and picked up the food in those adverse weather conditions. Our motto was true on that day: Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds. I applaud you for that and “thank you.”
As to the writing of this article, you have collected over 282,000 pounds of food for the insecure here on Long Island. 282,000 pounds of food equate to 235,000 meals that you provided to seniors, children, veterans, and families.
We were down about 100,000 pounds from last year but that is not the fault of the letter carriers. Island Harvest promoted this food drive through TV commercials and radio broadcast, newspapers, local news stations, social media and more. My committee of Michael Castellano and Francis Toney distributed food drive cards and bags to the local post offices. We were about 140,000 food drive cards short from what I ordered from National. All the 110’s and 116’s along with some of the 119’s did not receive cards because of that issue. Then there is the economy factor: inflation is through the roof right now! The price of gas is about $5.00 a gallon. Every time you go to the grocery store, the price is higher than the time before. The average person is struggling to keep food on their own table. The consumer price index rose at a seasonally adjusted 0.6% for the month, putting the one-year pace at 3.8%, the highest since May 2023. Prices that consumers pay for a wide range of goods and services increased at a faster-than-expected pace in April, as another burst in energy prices raised further concerns about inflation’s impact on the U.S. economy. Energy prices, which jumped 3.8%, accounted for more than 40% of the headline gain, while food prices also climbed 0.5%. For energy, that put the 12-month gain at 17.9%, while food was up 3.2%. The gasoline index increased 28.4% annually. Food at home prices increased by 0.7%, the biggest monthly gain since August 2022. Then there are another factor people only care about themselves. It is not like years ago when neighbors knew neighbors and watched out and cared for one another. Now it is a dog eat dog world, and you are on your own. Neighbors don’t care about neighbors, they are just concerned about themselves, not others.
With all that said above, we still collected 282,000 pounds of food. That is 282,000 pounds of food that Island Harvest did not have on May 8, 2026, that they received on May 9, 2026, thanks to the hard and dedicated efforts of the letter carriers!
When I was at the warehouse on Saturday night a volunteer gave me a note that was stapled to one of the bags of food. Periodically we receive notes from the customers we pick up the food from. One note that caught my eye was the note that stated: For our postal carrier thank you for all you do, especially for today’s important work! This is why we do the food drive. It is important for you to collect the food that the residents put out for us to pick up. They notice this act of kindness. This is good publicity for the letter carrier! Don’t think this act of kindness does not get noticed by the residents here on Long Island, across the country and on The Hill. That is why we are one of the most trusted agencies in the government. Don’t think for one minute that the residents don’t support us and appreciate the job we do in providing mail to their homes 6 days a week! That note says it all!
What an incredible feeling that comes from a job well done and knowing that you helped make a difference. And all thanks to you the letter carriers and the generous Long Islanders who donated food at their mailbox! Thank you community for showing once again that we are Long Island Strong!
I would like to “thank” the letter carriers, USPS, all the sponsors, Long Island Federation of Labor, Local 138, Local 338, Island Harvest, their volunteers that participated in this year’s STAMP OUT HUNGER FOOD DRIVE!
