NORTHAMPTON — Accompanied by a shopping cart, local and state officials and other community advocates, the River 93.9’s Monte Belmonte is seeking to surpass $1 million raised for the Food Bank of Western Massachusetts through his annual “Monte’s March” event.
As part of the march, which began in 2010, the radio host will walk 43 miles from Springfield to Greenfield on Monday and Tuesday, along with officials such as U.S. Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Worcester, state Rep.-elect Lindsay Sabadosa and Northampton Mayor David Narkewicz, all while on air.
Looking at the possibility of raising a total of $1 million for the Food Bank by the end of this year’s march, Belmonte described the event as “beyond what I could have possibly imagined when we started this thing in 2010.”
“I couldn’t imagine it would have grown to be so big, but it just goes to show the generosity of where we live,” he added.
The event has raised about $883,000 total over the years, amounting to about 2.6 million meals, according to the Food Bank.
Aside from fundraising, Belmonte said that his goal for the march is to find solutions to systematically end hunger and eliminate the stigma surrounding food insecurity and programs such as SNAP (food stamps).
“There’s still a great deal of stigma surrounding what we think about the people who rely on emergency food are… and a shame associated with it, and there shouldn’t be,” Belmonte said.
He continued, “So I think talking about (food insecurity), hearing about it, getting those stories out there is a step in the right direction in trying to destigmatize it, and hopefully we can work on a solution from the top down too.”
Belmonte said that the march will also encourage people to consider food insecurity as it relates to immigrants, and will include a visit to Lucio Perez, who has been living in sanctuary at the First Congregational Church in Amherst since October 2017 in order to avoid deportation.
When the march first began eight years ago, Belmonte walked 26 miles from Northampton to Greenfield, but expanded the scope of the march upon learning more about food insecurity in the food deserts in the Springfield area.
Belmonte also said that he hopes to help bridge the “cultural divide” between people north and south of the Holyoke Range and encourage the communities to work together.
For his work with the march, Belmonte has been awarded an “eChievement Award” from the nationally syndicated eTown podcast/broadcast, which recognizes achievement in community service.
Listeners can donate by calling 888-323-HOPE (4673), visiting MontesMarch.com or making an in-person donation at Belmonte’s shopping cart.
Jacquelyn Voghel can be reached at jvoghel@gazettenet.com.