On Saturday, mail carriers will once again be looking to residents in the Village of Edwardsburg and Ontwa Township to help them “Stamp Out Hunger.”

The annual food drive, which benefits the Edwardsburg Food Pantry, began nationally in 1991.

In recent years, post office officials have noticed a surge in people providing food for the carriers to pick up when they drop off their mail.

Each year, the Edwardsburg mail carriers look forward to picking up the items and packing a trailer full of food to donate to the food pantry, which is located at Our Lady of the Lakes Catholic Church.

The village and township have declared Saturday as “Letter Carriers Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive Day” in an attempt to heighten awareness of the need, not only in the United States, but also in their own backyard.

All residents of the village and the township have to do is leave non-perishable food items in a bag by their mailbox Saturday. The letter carriers will do the rest and 100 percent of the items collected will be donated to the food pantry.

This year Stamp Out Hunger will celebrate its 25th anniversary.

“We are so appreciative of the mail carriers that help us in securing all these groceries and things for the people in the area,” Ontwa Township Supervisor Jerry Marchetti said. “It is a lot of extra work for them because they have to get in and out and put the bags into the back of the car and then drop them off at the trailer and go back out. But they are so enthusiastic about it. It is great to see this happening in our community.

The mail carriers do not mind the extra work and are looking forward to Saturday.

“It is amazing how a little bit of something can feed so many people,” said Kelly Bolin. “If people will just put even a little bit out, it can feed so many people.”

“It is a great way to make a difference in the community in just one day,” said Vanessa Gonsoski. “We all come together and it is wonderful. It helps stock up the pantry and helps keeps it going.

Gonsoski said she has been amazed at the growth of the food drive the past couple of years.

“This community is really great,” she said. “We always have a successful Saturday.”

Edwardsburg Presbyterian Church Pastor Scott Scheel, who is also the director of the food pantry, is also pleased with how much food can be provided on Saturday.

“They have been doing this for quite a few years here. They have really ramped it up,” he said.

Scheel also said that the timing of the drive is perfect for the food pantry.

“As you head into the summer and you get into the dog days of summer people kind of forget about it,” he said. “They get to doing their own thing. It is not a high priority. Also, with kids getting out of school in a few weeks, those who were used to getting meals at school now need to get them at home, so we will see more people needing food.”

According to the letter carriers distributed, the timing of the food drive is critical.

“Food banks and pantries often receive a majority of their donations during the Thanksgiving and winter holiday seasons,” the letter states. “By springtime, many pantries are depleted, entering summer low on supplies at the time when many school breakfast and lunch programs are not available to children in need.”

The Edwardsburg Food Pantry is a non-denominational, not-for-profit organization.

Those who do not have food items to donate, but would like to make a monetary gift, can send donations to the Edwardsburg Food Pantry, 24832 US-12, Edwardsburg, MI 49112.