DOWAGIAC — Earlier this month, residents within the city of Dowagiac were able to help make a nationwide food drive a success.

On May 11, the Dowagiac Post Office participated in the National Association of Letter Carriers Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive. The event, which has been hosted annually for 27 years nationwide, allows postal customers to leave food donations at their mailboxes to be collected by postal workers and volunteers. The event is the largest single day food drive in the country.

This year marked the 19th time Dowagiac had participated in the food drive, and the drive collected more than 6,400 pounds of food in the city.

In Dowagiac, donations will benefit ACTION Ministries, First Christian Church and St. Paul’s Episcopal Church. Representatives with those organizations said they would like to thank the group of 30-plus volunteers who donated their time and efforts to make the drive a huge success.