St. Vincent de Paul Recruiting Teams For The Foodshare Walk Against Hunger

From St. Vincent de Paul Middletown
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St. Vincent de Paul Middletown is now recruiting teams in the Greater Middletown area to participate in the 33rd Annual Walk Against Hunger hosted by Foodshare. This year’s event will take place on Sunday May 1ST at Liam E. McGee Memorial Park (formerly Hartbeat Park), located at 140 Garden Street in Hartford. St. Vincent de Paul Middletown is a benefiting agency of the event, and funds raised by city teams will help feed those in need right here in our community.

The Foodshare Walk Against Hunger is the largest walk in the state to fight hunger. In 2015 over 4,000 walkers participated and over $630,000 was raised from all across Connecticut. Through Foodshare’s management, local community partners like St. Vincent de Paul Middletown can participate in the event and raise funds for their local programs.

St. Vincent de Paul Middletown’s programs include the Soup Kitchen and Amazing Grace Food Pantry. At Amazing Grace, local families in need can shop once a month for approximately three days’ worth of groceries free of charge. Amazing Grace currently serves over 1,000 individuals and families each month and distributes over 360,000 food items each year. In 2015, Amazing Grace and the Soup Kitchen together provided approximately 1,000 meals per day to residents in the Middletown area.

The Walk Against Hunger is St. Vincent de Paul Middletown’s largest annual fundraiser. It comes at a critical time of year, as the approaching summer months typically see an increase in food demand, but a decline in incoming donations. We hope to have an even larger turnout from the Greater Middletown area than we had in 2015, when approximately 300 walkers came together and raised $37,000. There are several ways to get involved. Become a Team Captain and form a team – ask your friends, family, coworkers and neighbors to walk with you – or join one of our already established teams. Individuals who do not have a team affiliation are invited to join the Middletown Community team. Or, if you can’t join us on May 1st, consider sponsoring a walker or sign up to be a “spirit walker” and fundraise online.

The 2.5 mile walk begins and ends at Liam E. McGee Memorial Park, adjacent to The Hartford Insurance’s main campus, and takes walkers around Bushnell Park. Two stops along the route provide water and restrooms. Free event parking is provided at The Hartford Insurance lot at 690 Asylum Avenue. Walkers should arrive by 1:00 pm on May 1st for check-in and pre-Walk entertainment. The walk steps off, rain or shine, at 2:00 pm. T-shirts will be provided to St. Vincent de Paul Middletown walkers. Foodshare is also offering recognition prizes for funds raised.

To learn more about the Walk Against Hunger, visit www.foodsharewalk.org and click on “Register” or “Donate”. Be sure to check the box for St. Vincent de Paul Middletown as the benefiting program in your registration to ensure the funds you raise stay in the Middletown community.

If you have any questions or would like help with the registration process, please contact Walk Coordinator Jessica Broderick at 860-759-5811 or jess@svdmiddletown.org.