‘Stamp Out Hunger’ Letter Carriers, Volunteers Brave the Rain at ECHO

Neither rain nor heat nor gloom of night — and those dark storm clouds did gather — kept the more than 100 volunteers from turning out today, May 14, at the Emergency Care Help Organization for the 2011 “Stamp Out Hunger” Postal Food Drive.

Organized by the National Association of Letter Carriers, the drive is the largest one-day food collection in the world, stocking the shelves of food banks and pantries nationwide with some 80-90 million pounds of non-perishable food items

Here in the Greater Brandon area, the drive made possible with letter carriers from Brandon, Riverview and Valrico is expected to collect more than 90,000 pounds of food for the Emergency Care Help Organization (ECHO) on Parsons Avenue.

Jim Brophy, now retired, has been there from the start.

As a letter carrier, he was among the first to help organize the first drive in Brandon, in 1994. He now lives in South Tampa, but every year has come back to Brandon to see how his baby has grown.

And has she grown.

“In the first year, we collected 800 to 1,000 pounds of food,” Brophy said, in between shifts of unloading postal vans laden with food at ECHO on May 14. “Then the carriers in Valrico, Riverview and Seffner joined in and it really took off.”

ECHO serves more than 700 area residents monthly from the communities of Brandon, Lithia, Dover, Gibsonton, Seffner, Valrico and Riverview. The group provides food, clothing and household items to individuals and families in emergency situations up to four times in a lifetime.

The idea for the food drive was born in the early 1990s when two Arizona food carriers who delivered to a food pantry noticed their shelves were always bare around May.

The postal carriers union backed the effort and it quickly grew nationwide. Letter carriers have helped collect more than 1 billion pounds of food since those early days. Brophy said he believes part of the appeal of the drive is that it’s a local effort helping local people.

“It comes down to each letter carrier running his own food drive, with the people on his route contributing the food,” Brophy said.  “People know that the food will go to local people who need it. ”

The need in Brandon is great, said Cheryl Newman Pratt who, with her son Justin, ignored an afternoon downpour and gusty winds to help unload donations at ECHO.

The nationwide economic downturn has hurt her own business, she said, and she has had to lay off workers from Pratt Co. Roofing as a result.

“There are people out there going through a hard time so we came out here to help bring a small blessing to those who need it most,” she said.

Stacy Efaw, ECHO’s executive director, was grateful for the blessings of a few strong volunteers as the wind whipped and pulled at the temporary awning in ECHO’s main parking lot. The volunteers managed to hold down the awning and, when the storm passed, others jumped in to move the boxes of food inside.

“The volunteers have been great,” Efaw said. “And the community has been wonderful as always. Our area always gets one of the best responses in the nation.”

There’s still time to get involved in the food drive. ECHO needs volunteers to sort food May 15 at Feeding America off State Road 60, at 4702 Transport Drive, in Building 6.

The available shifts are from 10a.m.-12:30 p.m., 12:30-3p.m. and 3p.m. until the work is finished. For information, visit ECHO online or call (813) 685-0935.

Volunteers must be at least 14 years of age and refreshments will be provided. Volunteers are asked to wear closed-toe shoes. Students are eligible to receive community service hours.