[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 61 (Wednesday, May 11, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E936]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    DELIVERING MAIL--COLLECTING HOPE

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. JIM McDERMOTT

                             of washington

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, May 11, 2005

  Mr. McDERMOTT. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to gratefully acknowledge 
and thank the National Association of Letter Carriers, the U.S. Postal 
Service (USPS), the AFL-CIO, America's Second Harvest, and the United 
Way of America for their extraordinary efforts in organizing and 
carrying out the largest single food drive in the world: the annual 
National Association of Letter Carriers National Food Drive.
  The food drive will again take place on the second Saturday in May, 
which this year falls on May 14th. The timing of the drive is no 
coincidence; it comes at a time when most food banks are low on 
supplies, having exhausted their collections from the holiday season. 
Last year the food drive collected an incredible 71 million pounds of 
food for donation to food banks, pantries, and shelters across the 
country.
  As you can imagine, it takes an army of volunteers to collect that 
amount of food. This year USPS, with help from the Campbell Soup 
Company and Valpak Direct Marketing Systems, is distributing more than 
150 million mailings promoting the drive and encouraging donations. On 
May 14th, donations will be collected by letter carriers along their 
mail routes in all 50 states.
  This year's food drive has an added urgency and importance. The food 
drive largely supplements the inadequate support the Federal government 
has provided to our nation's citizens facing financial difficulty. 
Families around the nation are struggling to get by--family wage jobs 
are scarce, energy prices are at record highs, and government support 
mechanisms are increasingly being axed by this Administration and this 
Congress.
  When we think about letter carriers, first class comes to mind. From 
now on, we should think of letter carriers and everyone involved in 
this as world class, because that's what they are. Please join me in 
donating food on May 14th and acknowledging the spirit of America that 
will be carried from door to door. May this year's food drive be the 
safest and most abundant collection yet.

                          ____________________