IRAS to hold annual bicycle sale May 11

May 8—Information, Referral and Assistance Services will host its annual bicycle sale, held in the front yard at 219 First Ave, beginning at 11 a.m. on Saturday.

"I would say come early," IRAS executive director Regan Michaelsen said, "because they do go fast."

Michaelsen estimates a total of 50 to 60 bicycles for both children and adults to be sold this year, most at a cost of $20 each.

"Any of the bikes that are collected throughout the year that have been abandoned or left somewhere," Michaelsen said, "the police department collects them. They hold them for 90 days, and if nobody claims them, they get released to us."

Also on Saturday, IRAS will be taking in donations collected from the National Association of Letter Carriers "Stamp Out Hunger" national food drive.

On the second Saturday in May of each year, community members are asked to bag healthy, non-perishable food items and place them near their mailboxes for mail carriers to pick up.

According to the United States Post Office, nearly 1,500 NALC branches in all 50 states, the District of Columbis, Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Virgin Islands are involved in the drive which has delivered more than 1.82 billion pounds of food over the past 30 years.

Donations stay within the communities in which they are collected. Michaelsen said IRAS staff will be at the organization's First Avenue location from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. to take in all donations from postal workers but also any that members of the community wish to bring directly there.

"It's a lot of work for the mail carriers," she said. "They bring in a lot of food."

Michaelsen said "staple" pantry items are encouraged in donations, such as peanut butter, cereal, and soups.

More information about Information, Referral and Assistance Services is available online at irasclinton.com