Nov. 14, 2025, SPRINGFIELD, Mass. — Hunger Awareness Week on 88.5 NEPM is Nov. 17-21. Beginning Monday, NEPM will air a reporting series exploring hunger in western Massachusetts and what’s being done to combat it. Reporting will be featured on “Morning Edition” from 5–9 a.m.; on “The Fabulous 413” at 3 p.m.; on “All Things Considered” from 4–6:30 p.m. and online at nepm.org/hunger.
This week-long reporting effort comes before the 16th annual March for the Food Bank which aims to raise $650,000 for the Food Bank of Western Massachusetts on Nov. 24 and 25.
The march is led by 88.5 NEPM’s Monte Belmonte, who pushes an empty shopping cart from Springfield to Greenfield to raise awareness about hunger in western Massachusetts along with hundreds of supporters. The theme for this year’s march will celebrate the importance of public media’s educational programming for kids. In July, President Trump and the U.S. Congress eliminated federal funding for public media stations across the country including NEPM.
In addition to leading the March for the Food Bank, Belmonte has been tapped by the Governor’s Anti-Hunger Task Force to moderate a series of five listening sessions across the state designed to allow the task force to hear directly from affected communities.
According to Executive Order No. 643, the task force “was established to advise the governor on the development of long-term, sustainable solutions for addressing hunger, food insecurity, and associated economic hardships impacting people, families, and communities in Massachusetts.”
“By choosing Monte Belmonte to facilitate these conversations, the governor is confirming what we in the 413 have known for a long time: Monte is more than the talented co-host of our daily radio show ‘The Fabulous 413,’” said Matt Abramovitz, president of NEPM. “He is also a community leader who is dedicated to making western Massachusetts an even better place to live. That neighborly spirit is in public broadcasting’s DNA and it’s never been more important or more needed.”
Hunger Awareness Week on 88.5 NEPM will feature a variety of stories about how local people, businesses and nonprofits across western Massachusetts are finding innovative and sustainable ways to fight hunger in the region.
“This issue of hunger is ever present, but has moved to the forefront in recent weeks as the food assistance program (SNAP) was in jeopardy for those who use it across the nation, including more than 190,000 people in western Massachusetts,” said Elizabeth Román, NEPM’s executive editor of news. “The newsroom has been speaking with community members who face food insecurity as well as those who want to help end hunger in the region. During Hunger Awareness Week you will hear those stories and see them on our social media platforms.”
NEPM is proud to sponsor the March for the Food Bank, and will share updates from the march throughout the day on 88.5 NEPM and on its social media channels.
“Almost everything I’ve ever learned about being a good neighbor, I learned from PBS.” said Belmonte. “Grover taught me on Sesame Street that ‘sharing is what friends do.’ And Mister Rogers taught me that ‘All of us, at some time or other, need help. Whether we’re giving or receiving help, each one of us has something valuable to bring to this world. That’s one of the things that connects us as neighbors.’ But with some of the messages we’re getting from Washington, let’s just say, ‘one of these things is not like the other.’ With the elimination of federal funds for PBS and with federal funds for SNAP and other anti-hunger programs in jeopardy, we will celebrate what it means to be neighborly by raising money for the Food Bank of Western Massachusetts while dressing up as some of our favorite icons from PBS.”
Hunger Awareness Week on 88.5 NEPM is sponsored by Greenfield Cooperative Bank, Curran & Keegan Financial; Ted and Barbara Hebert of Teddy Bear Pools & Spas; MHC Services; Summerlin Floors; Holyoke Community College; Michael’s Limousine; GZA Geoenvironmental; Cotton Tree Services; Whalen Insurance; TSM Design; The Hartsbrook School and Franklin Community Co-op.
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New England Public Media enriches people’s lives in western Massachusetts and beyond by nurturing curiosity, inspiring community engagement, and reflecting the unique joys of living here. NEPM is the region’s source for PBS and NPR programs and for locally produced news, video, and music content. For more information, visit nepm.org or follow NEPM on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and YouTube.