South Florida Runners and Walkers Stride to End Hunger on March 5
BOYNTON BEACH, Jan. 06, 2017 — Hundreds of amateur runners, fitness enthusiasts and even entire families are expected to take to the streets of this seaside community on Saturday, March 4 with a common goal of ending hunger in Palm Beach County and feeding those in need, including the elderly.
"We need more money to feed our seniors. Right now we are only serving meals two days a week and some people are simply falling through the safety net," explained Sherry Johnson, executive director of the Community Caring Center of Greater Boynton Beach, Inc. (CCC), which is organizing the 2017 Hunger Walk / 5K Run to raise money and awareness. "We have 262 frail and elderly shut-in seniors that are in dire need of food on a daily basis."
As Forbes Magazine once noted, "there are few communities in the world whose name is more associated with wealth than Palm Beach," but the same can’t be said of Palm Beach County and South Florida, which has some 785,040 "food insecure individuals," according to Feeding South Florida, the largest food bank serving Palm Beach, Broward, Miami-Dade and Monroe Counties.
For a modest $35 registration fee, entrants will be eligible to participate in the 5K Run and receive a free T-shirt as they vie for prizes that include a pizza or ice cream party and dinners at area restaurants. There is no registration fee for the walk, but it is suggested that participants donate canned goods and/or $20. The 2016 event attracted 150 runners and 110 walkers.
AmTrust Bank, a division of New York Community Bank, is the event sponsor for this year. Additional corporate sponsors and prizes are still needed, according to Johnson, who said that the March 4 event offers excellent team-building opportunities for sponsoring organizations while providing much needed support for the Center. The CCC helps some 5,000 people per year and serves up 44,000 pounds of food annually and prepares over 11,000 hot meals a year to low-income seniors.
"The proceeds are used to support our programs like senior hunger, nutrition education, children’s gardening and other programs to stock our food pantry," Johnson explained, adding that Palm Beach County seniors and children are three times more likely than the national average to face food insecurity, meaning that they do know where their next meal will come from. "This is a wonderful thing to do with your children. Lots of parents ran with their children last year. You can push your baby carriage over to the beach and back, while the runners will be timed and have the ability to use their results to qualify for other events. The event is also dog friendly. "
About Community Caring Center of Greater Boynton Beach, Inc.
Community Caring Center of Greater Boynton Beach, Inc. (CCC) is a 501(c)(3) organization created in 1987 to provide a unique approach to addressing root causes of poverty through an innovative integration of social services programs, economic development (through small business incubation), nutrition education and access to a healthy, affordable and sustainable food center. A partner agency of Feeding South Florida and Palm Beach County Food Bank, the CCC helps some 5,000 people per year and serves up 44,000 pounds of food annually.
For more information, please visit: http://www.cccgbb.org 2
SOURCE: CCC RELATED LINKS: cccgbb.org
PHOTO: The 2016 Hunger Walk and 5K Run attracted 150 runners and 110 walkers to fight hunger in Palm Beach County. https://www.facebook.com/164790420226058/photos/a.1063233453715079.1073741839.164790420226058/1063391870365904/?type=3&theater
https://www.facebook.com/164790420226058/photos/a.1063233453715079.1073741839.164790420226058/1063234063715018/?type=3&theater
https://www.facebook.com/164790420226058/photos/a.1063233453715079.1073741839.164790420226058/1063235233714901/?type=3&theater
also cccgbb.org for additional photos
