VALDOSTA — While area postal carriers could not be deterred from their appointed tasks of delivering mail and gathering non-perishable foods in this past weekend’s annual Letter Carriers National Food Drive, soaring gas prices did not keep South Georgians from giving a record amount of food.

While area residents did not meet America’s Second Harvest of South Georgia’s goal of 150,000 pounds of food, they did donate 144,050 pounds, says Frank Richards, America’s Second Harvest of South Georgia director. That means members of National Association of Letter Carriers local branch 998 collected approximately 30,000 pounds, or 15 tons, more food Saturday than last year’s donations.

Last year, the drive collected approximately 115,000 pounds of canned goods and non-perishable items. Saturday’s collection also represents 40,000 more pounds than what was collected two years ago.

The Valdosta-based food drive regularly tops per capita donations throughout the state and regularly comes in second to only the Atlanta area in overall donations.

Valdosta has also been an innovator in the postal food drives.

Introduction of plastic bags in the mail marked the Valdosta region’s big increase of donations.

Prior to 2003, Valdosta-area letter carriers regularly collected about 40,000 pounds of food. In 2003, America’s Second Harvest of South Georgia arranged for the plastic collection bags to be mailed to area residents. Richards predicted an increase in donations, a healthy increase by several thousand pounds above the approximately 40,000 pounds collected in 2002.

Postal workers thought Richards was being far too optimistic. They didn’t expect much more than the previous years’ 40,000 number. To everyone’s surprise, area residents doubled their donations in 2003 to an astounding 80,000 pounds. Food banks throughout the nation now mail plastic bags to residents prior to their drives.