Stamp Out Hunger: Postal workers collect donations around Utah County to fill food pantries at Tabitha’s Way
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- Blue grocery bags filled with food donations sit in a mail bin at the American Fork Post Office for the annual Stamp Out Hunger food drive Saturday, May 10, 2025.
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- Kara Smith of Tabitha’s Way Local Food Pantry, left, and volunteer Kevin Crandall, right, load food donations into a mail bin at the American Fork Post Office for the annual Stamp Out Hunger food drive Saturday, May 10, 2025.
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- Blue grocery bags filled with food donations sit in a mail bin at the American Fork Post Office for the annual Stamp Out Hunger food drive Saturday, May 10, 2025.
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- Food donations sit in a large box at the American Fork Post Office for the annual Stamp Out Hunger food drive Saturday, May 10, 2025.
Letter carriers on Saturday took an extra responsibility. In addition to delivering mail along their routes, they also collected food donations to help people in the community facing hunger.
The effort is part of the annual National Association of Letter Carriers’ Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive.
For more than 30 years, on the second Saturday in May, letter carriers across the country collect grocery sacks filled with nonperishable food items from their postal customers. According to the Utah Food Bank, it’s become the largest single-day food drive in the nation.
The donations help restock the shelves at food banks and pantries that help people who are experiencing food insecurity.
Across Utah County, the campaign mobilized dozens of postal workers who filled the back of their mail trucks with pounds of food to be taken back to their respective post office sites where it was sorted and eventually delivered to Tabitha’s Way Local Food Pantry in Pleasant Grove, as well as its location in Spanish Fork.
At the American Fork Post Office, Kevin and Paula Crandall, of Highland, helped move loads of blue grocery sacks filled with food donations into postal bins and eventually into large boxes that will be delivered to Tabitha’s Way.
The couple said they’ve been volunteering with Tabitha’s Way for two years, dedicating three days a week to their role as senior support missionaries.
“We’ve had big truckloads come in today, and they (letter carriers) come and smile, and thank us for helping,” Kevin Crandall said. “And so we tried to thank them for the extra work that they do — to have them help the community, give to people that need it, that would go without if they didn’t have it.”
Paula Crandall said it’s heartwarming to see the impact donations from such food drives have on the community.
“You can see that relief and gratitude,” she said. “I’ve seen so many people leave Tabitha’s Way in tears because they’re overjoyed with how much food they get.”
Kara Smith, community relations coordinator for Tabitha’s Way North County local food pantry, said roughly 40 volunteers participated in the food drive, unloading mail trucks at the American Fork, Lehi and Pleasant Grove post offices.
Smith said in 2024, they received around 41,000 pounds of food from the one-day campaign. As of Saturday, the donations were on track to match that number, but she hopes the total amount of donations collected will exceed the previous year.
Smith said the current need is dire as they continue to see an increasing number of individuals dealing with food scarcity.
“We’re at about 13,000 individuals that we’re serving a month right now, I think we’re at an all-time high actually,” she told the Daily Herald.
The yearly Stamp Out Hunger campaign comes at a vital time for Tabitha’s Way, as Smith said it’s one of their last major food drives until the fall.
“During the summer, our need goes up because we don’t have any more food drives after this and we also have a big drop in donations during the summer,” she noted. “So this is really big to help us get through the summer.”
According to the Utah Food Bank, more than 400,000 Utahns and 1 in 6 Utah kids are facing food insecurity, yielding an ongoing need that food banks and pantries look to fulfill.
Smith also notes the increasing need for food assistance due to economic challenges and rising grocery prices. She encourages those who find themselves in hard times to visit one of their pantries. And for community members with the means to help — to consider volunteering or donating.
“We have a lot of middle class, working people who are struggling right now. And it can happen to anybody, so you never know if you might be in that position one day,” Smith said.
