Throughout May, Feed The Hungry supporters have been raising money to make a difference in the lives of others.
Great Coventry Foodbankathon 2.0
One of the key events in May for Feed The Hungry’s largest UK project, Coventry foodbank, was “The Great Coventry Foodbankathon”. The 21 mile route, that goes between the 15 foodbank centres around the city of Coventry, was walked and run by sponsored participants to raise money for the foodbank.
On Bank Holiday Monday, 6th May, the running team began at the bleary-eyed time of 6am, to avoid both the heat of the day and the rain forecast for the afternoon. The starting location was at the western-most foodbank centre, St. Stephen’s Church, Canley, where a few early-risers saw the Foodbankathon begin.
Beginning to Walk
At the more sociable time of 9am, walkers donned food-themed costumes started their trek across the city, following the same route. ITV Central News and the BBC slowed progress slightly, as the walking team were interviewed about Coventry foodbank and asked why they were dressed as carrots and bananas.
As the clock struck 9.30am, the running team reached the end location, completing the Foodbankathon in just three and a half hours.
Rich Smith, who led the running team, explained, “Taking part in the Foodbankathon was a great, albeit challenging, experience. When I finished at St. Catherine’s at 9.30am, I was hungry – I’d not really eaten before starting the run – but my wife had brought food for me at the finish line. I had the option to eat, but there are people around Coventry who don’t have that choice.“
Dave’s story
Rich continued, “In the past year, we had a guy called Dave who came to the foodbank. He’s a father with three children and the main earner in his household. He lost his job unexpectedly, and while he had savings to cover bills for a while, his family were struggling to afford food.
“Coventry foodbank were able to help him with food parcels for a few weeks until he managed to find another job. That’s the gap we’re standing in – offering support for those who are in food crisis, often through no fault of their own.”
“We want to support people to move out of food poverty.”
The walking team continued their costumed jaunt to each foodbank centre, stopping briefly in Coventry city centre on the way to raise awareness of what the foodbank was doing to support people in the city.
The youngest Foodbankathon participant, Phoebe aged 10, was walking with her carrot-clad mum, Ali, who shared, “There are people who don’t have carrots; there are people who don’t have food, and we want to support people to move themselves out of food poverty.”
After a long 9 hours, the intrepid walking team reached the end of the Foodbankathon route. The journey had taken them around the whole city and over £3,000 had been raised for the foodbank.
We are so grateful to everyone who participated in Make May Matter to raise money and awareness of the work of Feed The Hungry. And we are already excited for The Great Coventry Foodbankathon 2025!
