The 18064 Zip Code Helps "Stamp Out Hunger"

They were a bit overwhelmed, but they were also incredibly grateful.

On Saturday afternoon, around 3:30 p.m., that statement is how each volunteer at the described "," the largest single-day food drive in America, which is held annually by the National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC).

At 9 a.m. Saturday morning, the local food bank at 529 S. Main St. began accepting bagged donations of nonperishable food items via letter carriers.

Around 3:30 p.m. -- an hour and a half until the planned closing of the food bank -- I stopped by to drop off my bag of donated goods.  I blamed the rain for me hand-delivering my bag, but really, I wanted to be nosey and see how the food drive went (and was still going).

During the drive, this specific food bank accepted donations from residents with a 18064 zip code (yes, that is my zip code).

What I found during my brief stop was a room full of bags upon bags of donated goods.  And although I could see the volunteers beginning to tire, their humor was still well intact, their "organized chaos" was still working, and their gratefulness grew as another letter carrier pulled up to the loading dock with more donations.

I can only imagine what volunteers were accepting and feeling at other food banks and ministries in the Lehigh Valley, and, well, across the country.

That said, I believe I will allow the photos (to the right) end this article for me.