Letter Carriers’ Drive Nets 600,000 Pounds of Food

Letter carriers throughout Orange County collected nearly 600,000 pounds of food while delivering Saturday’s mail, part of a national food drive organized by the letter carriers’ union.

Contributions from Orange County residents were down from last year’s inaugural drive, a spokesman for the National Assn. of Letter Carriers said, possibly because of concerns about the county’s financial future.

“(People) are basically saying it’s been a tough year,” said union spokesman Adam Trujillo.

Nearly Orange County 3,000 letter carriers took part in the drive.

Food they collected will go to charity groups and food banks throughout the county, Trujillo said.

The first letter-carrier food drive was launched 12 years ago in Phoenix, spawning drives throughout the nation.

“This is an opportunity for letter carriers to give back to their communities,” Trujillo said. “Throughout the year, our customers out there are actually our employers. Anyone who buys a stamp, we work for them. So this is an opportunity to show them how much we care for them.”

Trujillo said May was chosen for the food drive because it is the time of year when food banks traditionally run low.