Gov. Healey joins ‘March Against Hunger’ participants in Deerfield

DEERFIELD, MA. (WGGB/WSHM) - Governor Maura Healey made a stop in western Massachusetts Tuesday afternoon to participate in the March Against Hunger. She said that hunger is a multifaceted issue and one that can impact anyone at any age. She also highlighted just how important it is to her to raise awareness, funding, and support for tackling this issue.

It takes a marathon, not a sprint, to combat an issue as complex as hunger and about a hundred walkers braced the frigid temperatures to walk 43 miles as part of the March Against Hunger. The annual event is in its 14th year and kicked off on Monday. The two-day trek raises money for the Food Bank of Western Massachusetts.

At one point on their journey, Healey greeted walkers and spoke with them about what it will take to curb food insecurity throughout the Commonwealth.

“There’s so much that we can and should be doing to ensure that every family and every person in this great state has food and doesn’t want,” Healey said.

The governor said her recent bill that provides free breakfast and lunch in schools is one major step towards solving food insecurity, but more work is needed to be done, but Healey said that, with the help of the legislature and organizations like the Food Bank of Western Massachusetts, hunger is a problem we can solve once and for all.

The Food Bank is hoping to raise $500,000 this year, which would equate to 1.5 million meals.

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