On Saturday, May 9, the National Association of Letter Carriers and United Way of Lowndes County partnered to conduct our 17th Annual Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive to help stock shelves at local food pantries and shelters.
Letter carriers throughout Lowndes County collected more than 3,000 pounds of non-perishable food items generously contributed by Lowndes County residents to benefit United Way funded agencies Helping Hands, Community Resource Connection, Recovery House and The Salvation Army. Other outreach programs that participated are First Assembly of God James Cook Food Pantry, Columbus Christian Center, New Hope Bread of Life Fellowship and Safe Haven.
Staff at service agencies in Lowndes County has seen the number of people seeking help for the first time rise since last fall due to reduced hours on the job and closures. The need for non-perishable items extends beyond traditional Thanksgiving and Christmas season food drives. If you missed us this past Saturday and would like to make a food contribution, please contact United Way at 328-0943 for more information. We know that when many participate in a simple act of kindness the results can be remarkable. We tell our struggling neighbors their community cares about them in a tangible way.
On behalf of United Way of Lowndes County and the families who will be served, a tremendous thank you to Jeff McDonald and our local letter carriers for their efforts. Thanks also to the many generous residents whose contributions made this year”s drive such a success. Another sincere thank you to The Commercial Dispatch, WCBI, Citizens National Bank, Cumulus Broadcasting, CableOne, and The Link for helping us get the word out about the drive.
Jan Ballard
The writer is executive director of United Way of Lowndes County.
The Dispatch Editorial Board is made up of publisher Peter Imes, columnist Slim Smith, managing editor Zack Plair and senior newsroom staff.
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