100K-Pound Goal Targeted In Tomorrow's Food Drive

Roanoke area residents can help "stamp out hunger" tomorrow during the 12^th annual National Food Drive conducted by the National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC).Members of NALC Branch 524 set a goal of 100,000 pounds of food to collect on their regular rounds delivering mail tomorrow throughout the Roanoke area, said Chris Russo, local branch president and event spokesperson.Contributing food is a simple process: just pack a bag or box and set it near the mailbox before neighborhood carriers make deliveries. Canned goods, cereal, rice and other dry goods must be unopened and bear labels with expiration dates and nutrition information. Glass packaging should not be donated for safety reasons.Collected food is donated to the Southwestern Virginia Second Harvest Food Bank, which is partnering with NALC, the U.S. Postal Service and United Way of Roanoke Valley on the community-wide event. The food bank annually distributes about seven million pounds of food to regional pantries and agencies serving low-income and needy people in 26 counties and 10 cities.Kroger and Food Lion stores in the Roanoke Valley have agreed to serve as collection points after tomorrow for those who may not be home tomorrow, who forget to leave their donations at the mailbox, or who wish to contribute more.

The 2003 Roanoke area Food Drive netted 97,000 pounds of food.