Submitted Photo Local postal carriers gathered in front of a loading dock at the Fort Scott Post Office which was filled with non-perishable food items collected Saturday during the annual National Association of Letter Carriers National Food Drive. [Click to enlarge]

Generous Bourbon County citizens supplied the food items, which they left on their door step in sacks for carriers to pick up as they delivered their mail.

The supplies totaled 3 1/2 times what was collected last year, according to Todd McDermed, an employee with the U.S. Post Office in Fort Scott.

"The carriers were very excited about the amount of donations they picked up Saturday," McDermed said in an e-mail. "Even with the rain and hail, there were a lot of donations from our community."

Bob Eckles, director of The Beacon, an organization that helps poor residents with food and clothing assistance, thanked the letter carriers and residents who donated during the single-day event.

The Fort Scott High School Vocational Agriculture class on Tuesday shipped the donated food to the Beacon's headquarters at 525 E. Sixth St.

"They arrived at the post office and loaded a convoy of a half-dozen of their own pick up trucks with postal tubs brimming with donated food," Eckles said in a letter to The Fort Scott Tribune.

About 20 students formed an assembly line and quickly shelved the entire food collection, Eckles said.

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"This will make a significant difference in serving the needy in Bourbon County," he said.