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SNAP cuts make this weekend’s Walk for Hunger more pressing than ever, walkers say

"Our federal government is taking away the very program that would actually help them put food on the table."

Participants walk during Project Bread's 2025 Walk for Hunger charity event. David Leifer

By Samantha Genzer

May 1, 2026 | 10:52 AM

3 minutes to read

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Amid SNAP benefit cuts, these Greater Boston food businesses are here to help

At 9 years old, Ada Martinez was moving from home to home, unsure of where her next meal would come from.

Now 27, she’s revisiting that uncertainty with purpose, as she leads her own team in this year’s Walk for Hunger on Sunday.

“My drive for doing a Walk for Hunger is so that no kid ever has to experience that,” she told Boston.com.

About 4,000 people are expected to walk three miles — in person and virtually — to raise $1 million for Project Bread, a Boston-based organization working to connect families to reliable, nutritious food, according to Project Bread CEO Erin McAleer.

Now in its 57th year, the event comes at a moment that carries a new level of urgency, McAleer said.

“At the very same time that the need was growing and people are struggling to get by, our federal government is taking away the very program that would actually help them put food on the table,” she said, referring to cuts to SNAP benefits. “We’re seeing the impact of those cuts here in Massachusetts, but also across the country.”

Local enrollment in the federal government’s main food assistance program is plummeting at nearly double the national rate, according to the Boston Globe. At the same time, roughly one in three Massachusetts households are facing food insecurity, as the cost of basic necessities continues to rise, McAleer noted.

For Martinez, those numbers reflected a reality she lived: She recalled relying on members of a community in Dorchester to help feed her and her younger brother.

Last year, Martinez walked Walk for Hunger alone, with friends cheering her on from the sidelines. This year, she’s formed a team, “Take Care <3,” a name based on her social media platforms. The team has raised more than $1,500 heading into Sunday.

McAleer said she hopes Walk for Hunger would encourage the legislature to make addressing food insecurity a higher priority.

“These individuals, who are struggling to afford food, are the backbone of our society. There are kids, there are senior citizens, there are people working in really essential roles to our economy and our community, and they’re not making enough money to get by,” she said.

“When 40% of people in our state can’t afford food, that’s a problem, and that needs to be the number one priority,” McAleer added.

Rebecca Kelley, 35, the director of programs at Everett Community Growers, is walking to raise $5,000 to support her organization’s urban agriculture and food justice initiatives in Everett, where she said thousands of residents are affected by food insecurity.

“The message that we are hoping to send is about the power and resilience of communities when we come together to fight hunger,” Kelley said. “I think what is so special about the Walk for Hunger is like this day, where we see people across the commonwealth engaging in the same activity, in the same pursuit of raising awareness for hunger.”

Everett Community Growers staff joined by community members celebrating MA Urban Agriculture Week in 2025. – Courtesy of Everett Community Growers

McAleer said she hopes the event will help break down the stigma associated with food insecurity.

“We have to recognize it as a systemic failing, not an individual failing,” she said.

As demand grows and federal support becomes more uncertain, McAleer said the event remains both a critical fundraiser and a reflection of how communities are stepping up to meet an expanding gap.

“A lot of people right now are saying, “What can I do to help? How can I get involved? And this is it,” she said. “This is a way to do good and have some fun at the same time.”

To register for the Walk for Hunger or for more information, visit give.projectbread.org.