Guest Column: Food collected during Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive to benefit Pine Island Food Pantry

May 6, 2025 3 min read

The Letter Carrier’s Food Drive is a remarkable effort by the United States Postal Service to raise nonperishable food items for local pantries to help feed the hungry across America. This year it will be happening her on the island on Saturday, May 10. It is the largest single day food drive in our country.

We are very proud that due to our volunteer efforts to help our postal carrier’s collect donations, all the food collected continues to stay on our island. Last year, the drive raised 1,657 pounds of food to benefit our fellow islanders. The drive has been steadily increasing donations since the impacts of Hurricane Ian. The year prior the storm we raised over 6,000 pounds, our goal is to get back to and surpass those numbers. We are certainly hoping for a better outcome this year. Please be on the lookout in your mailbox close to May 10 for a postcard with directions for your donations.

In order to achieve full coverage and assistance across the carrier routes for all Pine Island and Matlacha Post Offices, the Food Pantry is working with them and many other organizations on the island to recruit volunteers for that day. We plan to have volunteers going out in advance of the carrier’s Saturday morning between 8:30-9 a.m. to lighten their load. Volunteers will take the collected donations back to the Pine Island Food Pantry where it will be weighed and categorized by our volunteers there.

Island neighbors who would like to help by collecting food in their neighborhood or help sorting in the pantry that day should give Guy D’Alessio a call at 917-774-7397

Individual residents can also help by either dropping of nonperishable food items at their local St. James City, Bokeelia or Matlacha Post Offices or at one of the other Food Pantry locations, which include Winn-Dixie, V.F.W, American Legion, Moose or Centennial Bank, the week of May 6 or leave them near their mailboxes on the morning of May 10 before 8:30 a.m. for volunteer pick up. On Saturday May 10, people should not get alarmed if they do not see someone in an official postal vehicle picking up their donations. All volunteers will have a poster on their dashboard vehicle identifying them. Some letter carriers may also be picking up donations left at individual mailboxes on their route.

In terms of what’s needed, we can really use any type of food donation as long as it’s nonperishable. Think about what your family typically eats and then look for BOGO-type sales which might make it easier to donate the free item. A complete list of foods we distribute can be found on our website https://pineislandfoodpantry.org/. Monetary donations can also be made online or by check, payable to the Pine Island Food Pantry.

We greatly appreciate the support of the community to help with both donations and collection of donations on Saturday, May 10. Pine Island is one of the few locations in Southwest Florida where donations stay within the local community and every little bit helps us help your neighbors. This is such an important event for us.

The Pine Island Food Pantry, which is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, serves the Pine Island and the greater Matlacha area and is operated by an all-volunteer staff in the life Center of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal Church on Stringfellow Road in Bokeelia. The goal of the Pantry is to ensure “No one goes Hungry” on the island. Visit our website to learn more.

— Pine Island Food Pantry staff