You can help the hungry just by leaving food by your mailbox

CINCINNATI (WKRC) – Residents of Northern Kentucky can help fill food pantries in their community by leaving food next to their mailbox as part of a fundraiser held by the National Association of Letter Carriers.

The “Stamp Out Hunger” campaign invites residents to place non-perishable foods by their mailboxes so that mail carriers can pick it up while delivering mail, then bring it to one of seven local food pantries.

The executive director of St. Vincent de Paul in Northern Kentucky said that food donations are needed, especially as summer approaches.

“[Hunger] really is on the rise,” she said. “We’ve seen increases to our St. Vincent de Paul stores by 40 percent in terms of visits, and these are new people who are coming to us because they’ve never been in this situation before where prices are rising. We know there are some funding cuts that have affected a lot of our folks within our community and those organizations that are helping people. There’s just a lot of need out there right now.”