Did you get your plastic bag in the mail for the Letter Carriers’ Food Drive? Did you remember to gather a bag or two of non-perishable food items? Were your donations by your mailbox on Saturday, May 11? If not, no worries. You can take your donations directly to the Bonney Lake Food Bank at 18409 Veterans Memorial Drive. There are bins at the front of the building 24-7 awaiting your donations or you may go Tuesday, Thursday or Friday 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. The food bank is also open 5 to 7 p.m. Friday.
If you need services, you may call 253-863-4043 for an appointment or arrive during business hours.
No application is necessary and all are welcome. The Prairie Ridge location is 14104 Prairie Ridge Drive East.
They are open 5 to 7 p.m. Tuesdays and 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Wednesday .
So what happened to the bag of groceries you put out by the mail box on Saturday? If you live in the older part of Bonney Lake, north of SR 410, served by the Bonney Lake Post Office, it went to the Bonney Lake Food Bank. But if you live in areas south of state Route 410 served by the Sumner Post Office, those red and gray bags took a ride down Elhi Hill to the Sumner Post Office, then were picked up by a Bonney Lake Food Bank truck. So, your donations made at your mailbox in Bonney Lake are available for your east county community. Thank you USPS and others for sponsoring the food drive and making sure the food gets to those that need it.
How else can you support the food bank? You can go on their website at and:
• Donate online.
• Want to have your own food drive? There are tips on how to do that, too.
• How about planting a row in your garden and donate those fruits or vegetables to the food bank?
• You can volunteer! Forms and fact sheets all conveniently located on the website.
• You can patronize the Snack Shack at Allan Yorke Park Sunday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. during the summer months. The food bank has a contract with the City of Bonney Lake to run the concession and the proceeds support food bank programs.
The food bank has not found support for the summer meal program yet. Without funding there will be no meals. Federal eligibility rules have changed. The program in past summers has provided 1-18 year olds with lunches and dinners during the summer school break. Meals had been provided at Allan Yorke, Cedarview, Ponderosa Estates, Prairie Ridge and Rhododendron Parks. Is there someone out there willing to sponsor this important program? If so, call Stew at (253) 863-4043.
Hunger is ongoing. Feeding the hungry is ongoing. A food drive during the holidays and this USPS food drive are not enough. The food bank needs dependable, steady donations to do their job. Please consider making regular donations throughout the year to help your neighbors. Thanks for giving!
• Greater Bonney Lake Historical Society Open House
In an earlier column, I gave a shout out to the Greater Bonney Lake Historical Society (GBLHS). They will be having an open house to view some of the Alfred and Elma Milotte photos and memorabilia on 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Monday, May 20 at the Public Works Center (former City Hall) at 19306 Bonney Lake Boulevard. Refreshments will be served. You will see the ongoing process of inventorying and cataloguing the thousands of photos, documents, and objects donated to GBLHS.
The Milotte’s were six time Academy Award winners for their amazing wildlife photography which launched the Walt Disney True Life Adventure series. These Bonney Lake residents began their Disney association in 1945 and became world renowned for their unique ability to capture scenes of animals in the wild in a manner that had never been seen by the public before. Thanks to the City, the collection is temporarily housed at the Public Works Center. The Milotte Film Festival will be held October 19.
More details to follow. See you at the open house!
