Postal workers collect food for hungry

By Christie Garton, Special for USA TODAY

Nick Cannon, host of America's Got Talent on NBC, remembers his family turning to food pantries for help when he was younger.

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  By Alberto E. Rodriguez, Getty Images

  Comedian Nick Cannon recalls going hungry.

By Alberto E. Rodriguez, Getty Images

Comedian Nick Cannon recalls going hungry.

"I make light of it now, but there were times when I went without food completely," said Cannon, 30. He and his wife, Mariah Carey, became the parents of twins April 30.

Those memories have inspired Cannon to team up with Feeding America, mail carriers and the Campbell Soup Co. for the annual "Stamp Out Hunger," the nation's largest single-day food drive, scheduled this Saturday.

Now in its 19th year, the event encourages Americans to donate non-perishable foods ? canned soup, canned vegetables, pasta, rice or cereal ? in a sturdy bag next to their mailbox before the time of regular mail delivery.

In 2010, letter carriers collected a record-setting total of 77.1 million pounds of food donations along their postal routes, pushing the 18-year total for the drive to more than 1billion pounds of food, according to Feeding America.

The team hopes to surpass last year's total by adding a new way to participate, Cannon says. In addition to the drive, Campbell will donate 1 pound of food (up to 1 million pounds) to the Feeding America food bank network for every person who joins the Stamp Out Hunger Cause on Facebook at www.facebook.com/StampOutHunger.

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