SMOKEY POINT — The Marysville, Arlington and Smokey Point post offices are gearing up for the annual National Association of Letter Carriers’ “Stamp Out Hunger” Food Drive May 14, to benefit the Marysville and Arlington community food banks.
Residents of Marysville, Arlington and Smokey Point should be on the lookout for yellow bags that will be delivered to their mailboxes no later than Saturday.
Those area residents are being asked to place their non-perishable food items in those bags for mail carriers to pick up early that morning, with the Marysville Post Office collecting for the Marysville Community Food Bank, and the Arlington and Smokey Point post offices collecting for the Arlington Community Food Bank.
“This food drive is the single most important food drive of the year,” said Dell Deierling, director of the Marysville Community Food Bank. “The food bank relies on this food to get through the summer, when kids are at home and family needs are high. We’re hoping for this food drive to get strong community support, to stock up our shelves and prepare for a busy summer.”
Deierling reported that Marysville saw 160 more families visit the food bank this April than April of last year.
“The number of families in need of food assistance is on the increase,” Deierling said.
Jerrie Inman, director of the Arlington Community Food Bank, deemed the Letter Carriers’ Food Drive the largest food drive of the year for her food bank.
“The food we receive during the holiday season just barely gets us to this food drive,” Inman said. “The food we receive in this food drive will hopefully get us through to the holidays.”
To help Marysville, call its food bank at 360-658-1054.
Deierling explained that volunteers will be most needed from noon to 5:30 p.m. at the Marysville Post Office, at 1010 State Ave.
“We could really use extra help around four in the afternoon, since that’s when there’s typically a surge in the number of trucks returning,” Deierling said.
Financial donations can be sent to the Marysville Community Food Bank at P.O. Box 917, Marysville, WA 98270.
To help Arlington, contact Leah Robinson at 425-327-8360 or tnrranch@wavecable.com.
Volunteers will be needed from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Arlington Community Food Bank, at 19118 63rd Ave. NE, as well as from noon to 4 p.m. at the Smokey Point Post Office, at 3609 168th St. NE, and from 1-4 p.m. at the Arlington Post Office, at 524 N. Olympic Ave.
