 Local coordinator Roger
Bakken reported 5,450 pounds of food
collected, including donations received by Mount Pulaski letter
carriers. Also, a collection cart was placed in the Lincoln IGA
store and supervised by a volunteer.The number of pounds
contributed by the two sites will be reported to the Springfield
post office, along with numbers from at least 15 additional post
offices in the surrounding area. A national total for number of
pounds collected will be tallied from all participant reports.
During the annual food drive, residents are asked to leave a bag
or box of nonperishable food items at their mailbox, and the
donations are collected by the local letter carriers. Donated food
is taken to the post office and weighed before being distributed to
local food pantries.
Five local pantries received donations this year -- Holy Family,
Community Action, Lincoln/Logan Food Pantry, Salvation Army and
Lincoln Christian University. The last two are new this year in
receiving items from the Stamp Out Hunger food drive.
"The total number of pounds was down from last year," Bakken
said, "but we were able to make substantial contributions to three
food pantries we usually donate to and two new ones. It is still a
large amount of food and a much-needed addition to their supply."
Bakken added that a few late food donations were received on Monday
from residents who forgot or were not home on Saturday.
Last year, the Stamp Out Hunger program in Lincoln asked schools
to collect, but organizers did not make the request during this
year's campaign.
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At the Lincoln/Logan Food Pantry on Logan Street, board president
Bill Overton and several volunteers unloaded, sorted and organized
over 1,000 pounds of food on Saturday afternoon.
Overton said of the donation: "We appreciate everything we get
and believe we are blessed by this community. People here are
generous, and it allows us to help a lot of people. But when you
provide assistance for hundreds of people every month, these shelves
can empty fast."
The facility provides once-a-month food assistance to 475-500
families, which translates to 1,500 to 1,600 individuals who benefit
from the pantry each month.
[By MARLA BLAIR]
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