FOOD DRIVE ON THE ROUTE LETTER CARRIERS JOIN COLLECTION STAFF WRITER.

SANTA CLARITA - Letter carriers in Santa Clarita hope to pick up more than they deliver Saturday as they collect nonperishable food for the Santa Clarita Valley Food Pantry.

As part of the nationwide Letter Carrier's Food Drive, donated food placed by mailboxes will be loaded onto mail trucks and distributed to the Food Pantry, where stock is usually depleted this time of year.

``About this time our shelves really start to look bare, so that's why this drive is so important,'' said Dianne Quinlan, executive director of the Food Pantry.

Last year, letter carriers collected 53,700 pounds of food, enough to last through fall and the holiday season, when schools begin holding food drives and businesses and churches help out, Quinlan said.

``We're grateful to the community for their generosity, and the hard work of the letter carriers in getting all that food collected. It's something we really appreciate,'' she said.

The Food Pantry needs canned fruits and vegetables, canned meats, tomato sauces, peanut butter, macaroni and cheese and dry soups, cereals and pastas. Personal hygiene items like toothpaste, shampoo and deodorant are also appreciated, Quinlan said.

``Whatever people have in their own pantries, that's what we need,'' she said.

Not only does the drive put food back on the Food Pantry's shelves, it gives letter carriers an opportunity to give back to the community where they work and live, and look forward to helping every year, said letter carrier and food drive coordinator Pamela Allen.

``It's very rewarding. It makes them feel like a part of the community they serve,'' Allen said. ``A lot of these people are very close to the residents they deliver to.''

At the end of the day, the letter carriers are tired, but their trucks are loaded with food to help the needy, which makes them feel good, Allen said.

``We're exhausted, but happy,'' she said.