Stamping Out Hunger, One Neighborhood at a Time

On Andrea Faulkner's Grand Rapids route, she knows the rhythms. She can tell who's home early and know who keeps their porch lights off.

So when mail began accumulating at one house, Andrea noticed. Andrea knocked on the front door of the home belonging to Edward and Hillie Horton. She walked around back, calling out, "It's the mail lady." The kitchen faucet was running, and it looked like someone had been preparing a meal. Inside, she found Mr. Horton at the bottom of the stairs. Andrea called 911. Responders discovered Mrs. Horton upstairs, severely weakened. Paramedics later told Andrea she likely had one day left.

"I think of myself as a neighbor," Andrea says. "We have eyes on our neighborhoods in a way no other agency has."  

That same neighbor-to-neighbor instinct powers the Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive, the nation's largest one-day food drive. For 33 years, letter carriers have collected food on the second Saturday in May, gathering a total of 2 billion pounds to support local pantries. The drive also helps restock shelves before summer, when children who rely on school meals are home for the season.

Andrea has coordinated the drive at her post office for 12 years. Each January, the union votes to participate, then Andrea and her team secure food bank partnerships and reach out to the public. Since COVID, they've worked directly with local pantries so communities can support neighbors who are struggling.

Dan TenHoopen, AFL-CIO labor liaison at Heart of West Michigan United Way, puts it simply: if you miss your letter carrier, bring your donation to the local post office. If you don't receive a branded bag, any bag works, though paper is better than plastic. Dan says collections in Grand Rapids Metro start at 60-80,000 pounds with just the postcard, up to 120-140,000 pounds when a plastic bag is given out, all the way to 200,000+ pounds when a paper bag is made available.

What you give matters, too. "We can't accept home-canned goods," Andrea says. "Anything commercially canned and shelf-stable." Protein helps: peanut butter, canned tuna, canned chicken, especially when it comes to providing meals for kids.  

This year, Andrea and Dan say the drive is needed more than ever. The cost of living is up, and families feel the pressure. Still, Andrea remembers an older woman chasing her down with two cans in a grocery bag. "She said she didn't have much, but wanted to do what she could."

On the second Saturday in May (this year, that’s May 9), leave nonperishable food near your mailbox. Your letter carrier will handle the rest. United Way is proud to stand with letter carriers as a founding partner of Stamp Out Hunger, helping our neighbors put food on the table.