Page 6 - MidWeek Windward - Dec 15, 2021

6 DECEMBER 15, 2021
Windward O‘ahu Residents Can Help ‘Stamp Out’ Hunger
BY DON ROBBINS
pounds of food. Our goal can still be reached if we collect about $100,000. We are about a third of the way there. Please help support this great cause,” Yoshika- wa says of the event, which has been taking place for the past 28 years.
wa declares.
“We adapted to the pan-
Windward O‘ahu resi- dents can help those less fortunate through the Na- tional Association of Let- ter Carriers annual Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive, explains Adele Yoshikawa, a postal letter carrier and coordinator of the event. It is being held now through Dec. 31 and is going vir- tual this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Letter carriers do more than just deliver the mail,” notes Yoshikawa, who has worked as a carrier for 23 years and has been a food drive coordinator for more than 15 years.
demic by wearing masks and sanitizing our work ar- eas and trucks. Our goal is to keep ourselves and our customers safe and hap- py. One of the ways that we give back to the community is through our annual food drive,” she emphasizes.
People can donate to Ha- wai‘i Foodbank at igfn.us/ vf/nalc or by texting NALC to 71777. They can also contribute to the effort by writing a check to Hawai‘i Foodbank, 2611 Kilihau St., Honolulu, HI, 96819 and putting NALC and their ZIP code in the memo line. The goal is to collect 1 million pounds of food this year.
“This could be one of the most important and life-changing food drives that we’ ve coordinated,” according to Yoshikawa.
“A $20 donation pro- vides about 25 meals and is equivalent to almost 240
“When I first started, the letter carriers would do the work by themselves and we wouldn’t go home until 10 p.m. at night. After reach-
The COVID-19 pandem- ic has changed the nature of letter carriers’ jobs.
“I became very passion- ate when I first saw the re- sults of our food drive. The shelves were empty and, after our drive, the shelves were full. The NALC holds the record for the largest one day event held in the nation,” Yoshikawa shares.
Cindy Namahoe (left) who works for Contractors License Center and is also a board member for WLH-Wahine Leaders of Hawai‘i, presents a check for more than $5,000 to National Association of Letter Carriers food drive representative Adele Yoshikawa last year. PHOTO COURTESY ADELE YOSHIKAWA
ed time frame. It’s been like an eight-month Christ- mas rush for us. We have become a vital lifeline for our customers, who have gone online to order clean- ing supplies, toiletries and just about anything else you can think of,” Yoshika-
She says that it could change how the food drives are done in the future, since everyone can now donate online. Yoshikawa notes that letter carriers cannot collect any food or person- ally accept cash or check donations on their routes.
“My brother, who passed away last year, was home- less at one time and the Ha- wai‘i Foodbank helped him during that time,” she adds.
school have to do a com- munity service project be- fore graduation, and they assist with the effort and receive volunteer letters, she adds.
ing out to the community, we have close to a hundred volunteers and go home before dark. Talk about a win-win event,” Yoshikawa emphasizes.
For more info, email adeleyoshikawa@yahoo. com or call her at 808-351- 4095.
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