WADDINGTON – When residents pay their tax bills at the town offices here this month, they will have an opportunity to give back to needy families.

Town Clerk Carol A. Burns has set up a food drive in the town offices, 48 Maple St. The town will collect canned goods and non-perishable food items until mid-February.

“It’s my way of helping the community,” Mrs. Burns said. “People give during the holidays, but it slows down a lot afterwards. The food pantries will be hurting, especially now that we’re in the winter months, and many people can’t get out.”

Drop-off donations can be made by visitng the offices from 7 a.m. until 3 p.m. Monday through Friday.

“I thought it would be a great idea,” Mrs. Burns said. “It’s not a hard thing for people to do, if you just get a can of soup from each person that walks in, it can really add up.”

This is not the first time Mrs. Burns attempted the collection. She attempted it in 2010, but it had mixed results.

“We decided to bring it back to see if we can get some better results,” she said. “We thought if we get the word out there people would definitely donate. With tax season, we obviously get a lot of visitors in here in January.”

Edie M. Streeter, coordinator of the Waddington Neighborhood Center, said she was very happy to have the town’s support.

“We can always use donations,” she said. “It just seems to slack after the holidays because most people are broke, but we always appreciate whatever people can give. The need is year-round.”

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