Watertown Food Pantry Walks in Project Bread’s Walk for Hunger

WATERTOWN, Mass. – On May 1, Watertown Food Pantry will be among thousands of virtual participants to lace up for Project Bread’s 54th annual Walk for Hunger. For the third consecutive year, the Watertown-based nonprofit will participate in the event through The Commonwealth Program which gives 60 percent of all funds raised by teams from likeminded organizations and agencies back to support their own hunger relief programs, with the remaining 40 percent applied to the statewide anti-hunger effort. To date, Project Bread awarded $10,272 in grants to Watertown Food Pantry through the Commonwealth Program.

Historically, the Walk for Hunger, the nation’s oldest continual pledge walk, takes place the first Sunday of May on the Boston Common. The 2022 fundraiser will be the third event to be done virtually and is expected to raise more than $1 million to support Project Bread’s work to increase food access for people of all ages in Massachusetts.

“Currently, 1 in 5 Massachusetts households with children is struggling without enough to eat and that number jumps dramatically for Black, brown, and immigrant households,” says Erin McAleer, Project Bread CEO. “Participating in the Walk for Hunger is one way in which residents can take action to fund school and community meal sites and Massachusetts’ only statewide hotline that connects residents with a range of food resources, including SNAP assistance. We can drive community change together.”

Money raised through the Walk is funding Project Bread’s work to ensure kids have reliable access to food, directly helping individuals and families, and advocating at the state and federal levels for expedited and efficient relief for those in need. Walk funds are also supporting community organizations, like Watertown Food Pantry, that are helping residents to access food now and grants to ensure communities have the resources necessary to sustain and grow local anti-hunger programs. In 2021, 28 nonprofits participated in The Commonwealth Program and raised more than $165,000 to support their own work.

The Watertown Council on Aging administers the Watertown Food Pantry, which provides food assistance to any Watertown resident in need. The organization partners with the Boston Area Gleaners and Fair Food to provide rescued fresh fruits and vegetables in addition to boxed and canned staples both donated and purchased by the pantry to neighbors in need. Prior to the pandemic, the pantry was open twice a week and residents could walk inside freely. During the peak of the COVID-19 crisis, devoted volunteers ensured the pantry never shut its doors. Today, the organization, despite a recent partial ceiling collapse, operates only on Tuesdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and serves approximately 500 families a month, or roughly 1,000 individuals of all ages monthly.

Longtime Watertown Food Pantry volunteer and the organization’s Walk for Hunger team captain Gerry Missal has devoted his retirement to helping feed those in need. For 28 years, he has participated in Project Bread’s annual fundraiser initially walking alongside his wife and two daughters and now walking with friends he’s made through the event along the way. In addition to his work at the pantry, prior to the pandemic, he had helped to prepare hot meals for clients at Bristol Lodge soup kitchen monthly through his local church. To date, he has cumulatively raised more than $78,000 to support statewide anti-hunger efforts through the Walk for Hunger.

“My favorite Walk took place in 2016 as it was held on the day after my birthday, April 30, and my daughters flew in to celebrate and walk with me,” says Gerry. This year he is walking the former in-person 20-mile route virtually by way of a treadmill in the basement of his home, tackling 1.5 to 2-mile increments at a time. “What keeps me coming back year after year is that we know hunger is cyclical. It keeps going beyond a one-day or annual event. People need support year-round. Hunger continues. So those who are able need to continue to do our part to help.”

This year’s event will include virtual programming with McAleer, elected officials, as well as walkers and volunteers posting and sharing their experiences along their neighborhood routes and why they are walking to help end hunger. Families with kids, individuals and teams of corporate employees are encouraged to find creative ways to connect virtually and fundraise together.

To register for the event and create a personal or team fundraising page for The Walk for Hunger or to make a donation, visit projectbread.org/walk or call (617) 723-5000.There is no registration fee or fundraising minimum to participate. Participants who raise $500 or more are recognized as Heart & Sole walkers, and receive access to personalized fundraising support, exclusive event gear, and invitations to events.

People experiencing food insecurity should call into Project Bread’s toll-free FoodSource Hotline (1-800-645-8333), which provides confidential assistance to connect with food resources, including SNAP benefits, in 180 languages and for the hearing impaired. For more information, visit: www.projectbread.org/get-help.

About Project Bread

Project Bread is the leading statewide anti-hunger organization in Massachusetts. Beginning in 1969 with the first Walk for Hunger, the nonprofit focuses on driving systemic change to ensure people of all ages have reliable access to healthy food. Project Bread works collaboratively across sectors to create innovative solutions to end hunger and improve lives across the Commonwealth. For more information, visit: www.projectbread.org.

About Watertown Food Pantry

The Watertown Council on Aging administers the Watertown Food Pantry, which provides food assistance to any Watertown resident in need. The Food Pantry, which is open only on Tuesdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., is located at the rear of the Belmont-Watertown United Methodist Church at 80 Mt. Auburn Street. The entrance to the Food Pantry is around the left corner of the church (formerly St. John's) from the parking lot at the side of the building, basement level. Look for the Watertown Food Pantry signs. Residents are welcome to visit twice per month. For more information, visit: https://www.watertown-ma.gov/330/Watertown-Food-Pantry.

###