Hunger Walk set for Oct. 5

Church congregations of all denominations in the city of Calhoun and Gordon County will join in the mission to end hunger at the Gordon County Christian Ministerial Alliance’s 10th annual Hunger Walk at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 5, at the Calhoun Recreation Center.

The Hunger Walk raises funds for local food banks at the Voluntary Action Center, Blewer Food Bank, God’s Pantry at Calhoun Seventhday Adventist Church, and St. Vincent de Paul’s Food Pantry at St. Clements Catholic Church. In previous years the Hunger Walk has raised upwards of $2,000 in a single afternoon.

Simply put, the event plays a major role in raising awareness of local hunger and alleviating hunger for local families in need.

According to the United States Department of Agriculture Economic Research Service, an average of 11.3% of people in Gordon County were food insecure from 2016 to 2018.

In those same years, data shows that an average of 3.8% of people in the county were members of “very low food secure households.” Food insecurity is defined by the limited or uncertain availability of nutritionally adequate and safe foods in a household or limited or uncertain ability to acquire those foods, and “very low food secure households” are defined by the USDA as households in which family members food intake and eating patterns were reduced or disrupted due to a lack of money or other resources.

The Voluntary Action Center, just one of the four food banks that will benefit from the proceeds of the Hunger Walk, served 26,615 hot meals to families affected by food insecurity in 2018 through its Community Kitchen program.

It also provided 2,997 families in Gordon County with food bags last year through its Food Pantry, reaching 7,907 people.

Jody Bryson represents his church, Calhoun First United Methodist Church, in the Ministerial Alliance and helped to organize this year’s Hunger Walk in collaboration with Rosellen Burns of New Echota United Methodist Church. The Gordon County Ministerial Association is a group through which pastors from all denominations and faiths meet to plan and participate in community events.

“This is an event we hold every year, and it’s something we want to continue doing for a long time,” Bryson said. “The food banks in Gordon County provide an important service to this community and the Hunger Walk gives us a chance to work together as leaders from different faiths to give back to them.”

All businesses, civic organizations and individuals are invited to participate in the Hunger Walk. Registration will begin at 1:30 p.m. before the race in the pavilion next to the Black and Yellow playground, near the George Chambers Resource Center. Those walking are asked to make a donation or to ask sponsors to donate to their efforts.

All donations should be turned in on the day of the walk.

The length of the walk will depend upon the ability of the walker and the amount of time they wish to spend on the walking trails.

Sponsors hope that this will be a family event and encourage children, youth, adults and senior citizens to participate; the paved route is accessible to strollers and wheelchairs.

For additional information about the Hunger Walk, contact Jody Bryson of Calhoun First United Methodist Church at 706-629-2685 or Rosellen Burns of New Echota United Methodist Church at 706-629-2445.