BETHEL — Bethel Area CROP Walk has been raising funds to reduce poverty locally and globally since 2006. This year the walk will be Sunday, September 22 at 11:30 starting at the Bethel Common and walking 3 miles (5k) around the village of Bethel to raise awareness and money for the work of Church World Service and the local school food backpack program (25%) which provides food for families in SAD 44 on weekends and vacations.

Food insecurity exists around the world, and around our town. Everyone can help reduce food insecurity with supporting CROP Walks and the hunger programs in the Bethel region.

Rev. Tim LeConey of West Parish Church will lead an ecumenical service at 10:00 on the Bethel Common prior to the CROP Walk. A community chorus will perform during the service. The chorus is open to anyone, If interested in participating please plan to attend a rehearsal on Wednesday, September 18 at 6:30 at West Parish Church.

After the service on Sunday there will be a picnic. People are requested to bring finger food to share before the walk, which will start around 11:30.

This year Bethel and some 2,000 cities and towns nationwide are joining together in interfaith community CROP Walks around the theme “Ending Hunger One Step at a Time.” Many of the CROP Walkers will be wearing “Walking Together” T-shirts, proclaiming their solidarity with the millions of neighbors around the world who have to walk to live – as well as with the millions served by local food pantries, food banks, and meal sites here in the U.S. These local ministries share in the funds raised by CROP Walks.

Africa is one part of the world where CROP Walks are making a big difference – in helping people grow food for their families, in providing clean water to villages, in working to assure that schools are zones of safety and learning, in the struggle against the AIDS pandemic, and in countless other ways.

For more information about the Bethel CROP Walk, contact Eileen Opie (eileen.opie@gmail.com) or Henrietta List (hlist@roadrunner.com) for sponsor sheets and more information.

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