Walk for Hunger raises $3.6M

BOSTON (AP) -- The 44th annual Walk for Hunger has raised an estimated $3.6 million that will help wide range of hunger relief programs across Massachusetts.

The 20-mile walk Sunday around metropolitan Boston that ended at Boston Common included 41,000 walkers and 2,000 volunteers.

The funds donated will be granted to 450 community programs that include emergency food providers, schools, summer food programs, community health centers, farmers' markets, community suppers, and home care organizations, and others.

Ellen Parker, executive director of walk organizer Project Bread, says more than 700,000 people in Massachusetts struggle to put food on the table.

The walk has raised nearly $85 million in its history.