Local Residents And Letter Carriers Help Restock Food Pantries

Greater New Bedford residents donated almost 30,000 pounds of food Saturday during the annual Letter Carriers Food Drive.  By late Saturday, the food was on its way to local food pantries.

Major Gilbert Parkhurst oversees the food pantry at the Salvation Aarmy in New Bedford.  "There's a lot of people who think of food drives around Christmas and Thanksgiving, but as we get into the spring and summer months, our food pantries go way down."  Parkhurst adds, "What the letter carriers are doing for us is very important, because a lot of this food will carry us for the next couple of months."

About a dozen food pantries will be receiving food collected by letter carriers.  Organizer Richard Drolet tells WBSM News, the total of 30,000 pounds will climb when donations from Wareham and Rochester are reported on Monday.