Just this month in New Jersey, more than 50 CROP Hunger Walks will be taking place, rallying support for local charities as well as benefitting the fight against hunger on the global scale.
According to Walk Director Christ Bryfogle, three area churches will be on hand at the Cherry Hill walk at Challenge Grove Park on Sunday, Oct. 14.
The park is located on the corner of Borton’s Mill Road at Caldwell Road.
An outreach committee through Bryfogle’s home church, Trinity Presbyterian Church on Route 70, planned the walk, and St. Michael’s Lutheran Church and St. Mary’s Catholic Church will also be present.
Bishop Eustace Preparatory School students and Cub Scout Troop No. 146 will be joining in.
Donations and community involvement are encouraged, Bryfogle said, with registration beginning at noon.
The walk will commence from the Challenge Grove Pavilion at 1 p.m., ending at 3 p.m.
“We’re hoping to have a good turn out,” he said, adding that about 100 people are expected to come out.
The Cherry Hill Food Pantry will receive 25 percent of donations from the event.
“Hunger relief is a critical need in so many communities, and the fact that we in Cherry Hill are able to help even a little bit through the CROP Hunger Walk makes me proud,” said Mayor Chuck Cahn in a statement. “This year, a portion of the proceeds go directly to the Cherry Hill Food Pantry, an all-volunteer organization that serves hundreds of families in need each year. Those are families from right here in Cherry Hill. They are our friends and our neighbors, and they deserve access to healthy, nutritious food, regardless of their current circumstances.”
The pantry relies on community support, he continued.
“The Food Pantry can only continue its work with the support of our community, and I believe each of us has a responsibility, if we have the means, to be good citizens and offer whatever support we can,” Cahn said. “The CROP Walk and the support of its participants will make a tremendous difference for so many people who need and deserve to live happy, healthy lives.”
Reaching around the nation and globe, proceeds are donated to a variety of needs through Church World Service (CWS).
According to its website, “Within the United States, CWS assists communities in responding to local hunger and disasters, resettles refugees, promotes fair national and international policies, provides educational resources, and offers opportunities to join a people-to-people network of local and global caring through participation in CROP Hunger Walks, the Blankets+ Program, and the CWS Kits Program.”
Nearby communities will be hosting their own walks, with Collingswood’s falling on the same day as Cherry Hill’s. Haddonfield will host a walk on Oct. 28.
There is no minimum donation amount required to participate, said Bryfogle, and the day is usually filled with friendly chitchat as walkers trek through the woods at the park.
“We have a good time,” he said.
Learn more or donate by visiting www.churchworldservice.org.
