r Community Action Services will team up with mail carriers to collect food for Utah seniors in need of food assistance
By Sara Davis
Community Action Services announces the Mail Carrier Stamp Out Hunger drive for Saturday, May 12. Food collected will benefit families and individuals facing hunger throughout Utah, Wasatch and Summit counties. The food drive takes place during May which is Older Americans Month. Special focus will be placed on collecting food that benefits seniors ages 60 and older who face food insecurity, are low income, at nutritional risk, isolated or homebound. Community Action Services Food Bank will partner with Mountainland Association Of Government/Meals on Wheels and eleven Senior Centers to coordinate the distribution of donated food to seniors in need.
“Utah seniors in need often are required to make a choice between purchasingrfood, buying medication or paying bills,” said W. Dave Smith, Food Bank Manager at Community Action Services. “That’s a difficult circumstance to be in. We hope for a very successful ‘Stamp Out Hunger’ food drive in 2018 to help our agency assist seniors and others in need. Our communities are healthier and more vibrant when we all remember those who are in need. Raising awareness and inspiring community and business support is key.”
Easy to use food for seniors is requested – canned tuna, chicken, meat and beans; peanut butter/jam; canned fruits, vegetables, soups, beef stews and shelf-stable meals that are non-perishable, not frozen or refrigerated are helpful. Mail carriers will deliver reminder flyers/bags to local households on the week of May 7th.
About Community Action ServicesrCommunity Action Services and Food Bank is a non-profit organization based in Provo, Utah, that is part of national Community Action efforts. Programs provide support to families and individuals in solving poverty: first, stabilize the family and then support them with programs as they rebuild their lives. Since 1967, the agency has stabilized persons in need by meeting their basic critical needs (such as food and housing) while providing them with the long-term solutions needed to rebuild their financial and social self-sufficiency, enabling them to move out of poverty.
