On Saturday, May 10, Huntley mail carriers will do more than drop off the latest cell phone bill, as the post office – and Grafton Food Pantry – are gearing up for the annual Stamp Out Hunger food drive.
According to the United States Postal Service, the event – led by letter carriers represented by the National Association of Letter Carriers, with help from rural letter carriers, other postal employees and volunteers – has delivered more than 1 billion pounds of food in the past 20 years.
The Huntley Post Office will officially join the national drive for the first time, though it has participated before. Derek Strissel, Huntley’s postmaster, said the post office in years past never really advertised for the event, but would still collect items donated by residents.
However, he is getting the word out this year through fliers hung up in local business, working alongside the Huntley Chamber of Commerce, posting messages about it on his personal Twitter account, and potentially the Huntley Neighbors website and is even planning a direct mail campaign for late next week.
“The big push is the Thursday before, and we may even do it that Wednesday. We’re going to send out a full-town postcard mailing, which basically reminds people that the event is coming up and tells them how to donate, if they’re interested,” Strissel said.
The drive works like this: on the second Saturday in May (this year would be May 10), letter carriers, in more than 10,000 cities and towns across the country, collect the non-perishable items left by those interested and gather the donations back at the post office – prior to delivering the haul to a local food bank, pantry, or shelter. Items can be left in a bag in or on the mailbox or even delivered to the post office during regular business hours on Saturday.
The drive in Huntley will primarily benefit the Grafton Food Pantry. Harriet Ford, a board member for the food pantry, said it has received some donations from the Algonquin and Lake in the Hills service in past years but believed that this was the first year for Huntley’s involvement.
“We have high expectations. This is a very generous and a very compassionate community that are in need. We’re very hopeful to have positive results from this effort,” she said.
The pantry is currently looking for volunteers. Peak hours for sorting the collection will fall between 2-4 p.m. that Saturday, Strissel said, since that is the time the mail carriers will come off their routes.
In terms of a goal, Strissel set a pretty lofty one – 10,000 pounds of food for the pantry – but believes it can be done and bases that number on his previous experience with the event.
“When I was in Sycamore, we had seven routes and would generally yield around 7,000 to 8,000 pounds. The coverage zone now, which covers Huntley and a portion of Gilberts, has 23 routes, so we’ll be hopefully able to do the 10,000,” he said.
His biggest push, though, is to build up the volunteer base for the Grafton Food Pantry. The post office has already established its volunteer base for that day, he said.
Grafton Food Pantry’s sorting zone will be located in the Huntley Park District’s cafeteria. It is able to provide the necessary space for the event, Ford said.
Those interested in volunteering are encouraged to email the pantry at graftonpantry@foxvalley.net or call (847) 495-0922.
