Teamsters deliver on pantry promise
Dixie Shaw is all smiles as folks work to fill a trailer with food stuffs to help Feed The County. Carrying the banner with Shaw in this year’s Potato Blossom Parade is Traci Place, of the Teamsters’ Presque Isle office.
By Kathy McCarty
Staff Writer
Teamsters Local 340, through its Women’s Committee, once again headed up a statewide food drive to benefit Catholic Charities of Maine, based in Caribou. For the third year, organizers lived up to their promise of surpassing the past year’s effort, collecting thousands of pounds of food and raising nearly $2,000 to aid the non-profit as it continues to feed those less fortunate in Aroostook County.
“Through the Feed the County program, Catholic Charities supplies food to 24 food pantries in Aroostook County and maintains their own food bank,” said Kenneth Eaton, president, Teamsters Local 340.
The Teamsters Joint Council 10 tractor trailer began traveling the length of the state of Maine on Friday, July 15, with the final collection destination being the Potato Blossom Festival Parade in Fort Fairfield on Saturday, July 16.
“The truck stopped at 14 designated locations to load and fill the truck with non-perishable food donations collected by the members of Teamsters Local 340 and its employers. The truck headed north to participate in the Maine Potato Blossom Parade on July 16 – that ended a week-long festival that has been around since 1937, the same year the Teamsters of Maine were founded,” said Eaton.
Despite the poor economic state the country is in, collection efforts surpassed past years’ totals.
“The Teamsters collected 30,000 pounds of food and $1,600 in monetary donations,” said Eaton. Last year’s food collection was around the same poundage but the dollar amount raised this year is nearly $400 higher than in 2010.
“This was the third year for the food drive. Food donations stayed the same but the monetary donations exceeded the 2010 collection. With the help of members, families and friends, the donations were delivered and unloaded to Catholic Charities/Feed the County in Caribou following the parade,” said Eaton.
