Want to donate food without leaving your house? The U.S. Postal Service can help with that
Do you have spare non-perishable items at home that you don’t need? Or do you want to make a difference without leaving your front yard?
The United States Postal Service and Idaho Foodbank are offering you the chance to do some good this weekend by participating in the Stamp Out Hunger food drive.
Every second Saturday of May, more than 10,000 cities, including Boise, participate in the Stamp Out Hunger food drive, which is run by the National Association of Letter Carriers. The postal service labels the drive the “largest one-day food drive in the nation,” stating that it has helped deliver 1.82 billion pounds of food in the last 30 years.
So, how does it work?
All you have to do is put non-perishable goods in a box and leave it next to your mailbox before a postal worker arrives on Saturday. The postal service will do the rest from there—in Boise’s case, they will take your items and hand them to the Idaho Foodbank, which will then distribute the food to needy families.
The Idaho Foodbank outlined in a news release the types of food that are most needed:
Whole grain pasta
Cereal
Low-sodium canned vegetables
Fruit canned in juice or extra light syrup
Dry or canned beans
The food bank also stressed that easy-to-open items, such as canned food with pop-top lids, are preferred.
If you don’t get your donations out by the mailbox in time, you can also drop them off directly at a U.S. postal office. The two post offices close to downtown Boise are 750 W. Bannock St. and 770 S. 13th St., but you can drop off donations at the post office that is most convenient.
