The Walk for Hunger, Boston, MA

Strutting Your Stuff to Meet the Needs of Others

The Walk for Hunger has become nearly a tradition in Boston, MA. For the last 38 years walkers have flocked to the capital of the commonwealth on the first Sunday of May to demonstrate their commitment to helping those less fortunate. The collection of people is both an amazing and an inspirational sight to behold. There are the expected runners and joggers who are well conditioned and ready to go. But there are also parents pushing kids in strollers, senior citizens groups in matching tee shirts, and amazingly people with every imaginable handicap. For a few hours on a Sunday morning they come together to say no to hunger in their state. Knowing more about the Walk for Hunger might convince you to make plans to join this very special event.

1. How far do walkers have to walk? Naturally the first question that many people ask about he Walk for Hunger has to do with the distance. To walk the entire Walk for Hunger course, walkers need to walk 20 miles. Many who participate in the Walk for Hunger each year get out a few months ahead of time and work themselves up to the challenge. If you never walk, attempting to go the full 20 miles is probably not wise. Only you know what your physical condition will allow. Only you and your doctor can determine if you are ready for this type of challenge.

So if you can't walk 20 miles should you just forget about the Walk for Hunger? Absolutely not , the Walk is meant for everyone. Even if you can only do two miles you can sign up and join the Walk. At each of the checkpoints along the 20 mile route there is transportation to return tired walkers back to the starting line. In 2006 some 43,000 walkers participated, not all of them made 20 miles but they all showed up and did their part.

2. What happens during the walk? It's natural for people who have never participated in the Walk for Hunger to imagine it to be a very tedious affair. After all how much fun can it be to walk twenty miles? The answer to that is that it can be and usually is a lot of fun. The walk is colorful with a huge display of balloons marking the beginning and end of the walk but everything is done by the Walk committee to make the space in between fun too.