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MVAC sponsors annual walk
By Sean Barron
YOUNGSTOWN
Sam Snyder considers himself highly fortunate to have the lifestyle he enjoys, but that has not blinded him to the sobering reality that countless other young people his age worldwide aren’t so lucky.
That realization has taken him beyond his church walls and out into the streets.
“I hope [people] realize that even a small amount of money, time and talent goes a long way,” the 18-year-old Youngstown State University pre-med and chemistry major said.
To that end, Snyder, a member of Poland Presbyterian Church and part of its youth group, joined several members of his congregation for Sunday’s annual CROP Hunger Walk that began at Unitarian Universalist Church, 1105 Elm St., on the North Side.
Sponsoring the event was the Mahoning Valley Association of Churches.
The fundraiser, said to be the nation’s oldest charity walk, is part of Church World Service, an organization that debuted shortly after World War II to tackle hunger in Europe and Asia.
At least 20 local churches were to have been part of the walk, with a goal to raise $11,000 toward fighting hunger locally and worldwide, noted the Rev. Nora Smith, an event organizer and assistant pastor of Canfield-based Word of God Christian Fellowship Church.
Twenty-five percent of proceeds will stay in the Mahoning Valley, and the rest will be distributed to developing countries. The local amount is to be divided among Fish Samaritan House, Protestant Family Services and Catholic Charities Regional Agency, said the Rev. Mrs. Smith, adding that last year’s walk brought in about $11,500.
Perfect weather greeted participants, some of whom took a 1-mile walk around nearby Wick Park, while others opted for a 5-mile jaunt through many North Side neighborhoods.
“We do this every year; it’s one of our big events to give back to the community,” said Erika Carcelli, Poland Presbyterian’s director of Christian education. “We try to get youth involved because we talk about how hunger affects youth in other parts of the world.”
The Poland church brought a group of about 40 to Sunday’s walk, said Carcelli, who added that her church has taken part in CROP walks since the 1980s.
Other regulars included members of Boardman-based Disciples Christian Church such as 11-year-old Marion Johnson, a Canfield Village Middle School fifth-grader.
“[Hunger] makes me feel really bad, because I get all this food and they don’t,” Marion said, referring to a main reason she wanted to be in the CROP walk.
This was the second such walk for Marion, who also took part in the fifth annual Nonviolence Parade and Rally earlier this month at the Covelli Centre. About the same time, she participated in a service at her church to celebrate World Communion Day, Marion added.
“We’re trying to do our part to end hunger,” said Dottie Johnson, who joined Disciples Church about 36 years ago and is Marion’s grandmother.
Another driving force behind the 12-member group’s desire to participate in the 1-mile walk was to act on its faith and perform God’s work, Dottie continued.
“It’s faith in action,” added the Rev. Beth Pass, Disciples’ pastor. “We want to make people believe God’s with us and God loves us all.”
The Rev. Nora Smith, one of the CROP walk’s organizers, also wished to thank area churches that brought food, as well as White House Fruit Farm Inc. of Canfield for donating apples.