KENTWOOD, Mich. — A flood of special deliveries arrived on Saturday at Kentwood's Green Apple Pantry from United State Postal Service workers helping with its Stamp Out Hunger event.
"In partnership with the National Association of Letter Carriers and the USPS, and their associates, the [Rural Letter Carriers Association], this is a one-day, the largest nationwide food drive in America," said Darrell Helsley, who serves as the president of the Letter Carriers Association's Branch 56.
As part of the event, postal workers delivered along their usual routes and gathered up food and meals left out for them by those to whom they deliver.
At the end of their routes, drivers then brought the food to Green Apple where volunteers sorted and got it ready for those in need.
"It's for a great cause, because you never know you're one paycheck away from you, yourself, a letter carrier needing assistance as well," Helsley said. "So, especially in today's economy, every can helps and we're here to stamp out hunger."
Additional pandemic-era benefits from the national Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) ran out in March, leading to a spike in demand at the pantry and leaving its shelves barren.
But with the help of the postal workers and others, Green Apple's Executive Director Nancy Cromley said they still aim to help all who come through their doors.
"For us, the event is huge because we started our morning with empty pantry shelves," Cromley said.
"Our numbers have increased in the last couple of months," Cromley said. "We have seen a 53% increase in the number of families needing our services. So, to get this kind of food into the building is going to help immensely."
Those in the Grand Rapids, Kentwood and Caledonia areas seeking help from the pantry are able to do so once every four weeks.
Other organizations that partner or otherwise work with Green Apple also had resources and teams present at the event, including Meijer, Starbucks and Amazon.
For the hundreds of families they serve each month, Cromley said the help of those taking part in Saturday's event and beyond can make all the difference.
"We support a community that's at risk for nutritional needs, but we don't ask what their income is or what their need is, or why they're here," Cromley said. "We just know that if they're here, they have a need. And so, we want to be able to fill that need."
Last year's inaugural Stamp Out Hunger event, Cromley said, generated rough 15,000 pounds of food. She said the pantry aimed to provide just as much for those in need this time around.