FALLSBURG – In the dim early hours of Halloween morning, long before the trick-or-treaters emerged, Marty and Lynn Colavito took their first steps on a four-day, nearly 50-mile journey through Sullivan and Orange counties. Their goal: to shine a light on food insecurity in the region and raise critical funds for the Sullivan County-based community organization SALT (Sullivan Allies Leading Together) and its partners.

As they departed from Liberty, skies hung heavy with clouds and rain slicked the roads. It was a somber backdrop, fitting for the issue at hand. For thousands in the region, food is not a guarantee. During the federal government shutdown in November, SNAP benefits were cut off. For many low-income families, it meant waking up to a new month with no assurance of how to put food on the table.

“Even if the shutdown ended today, it would take weeks to get SNAP flowing again,” Marty said during the walk. “That leaves people in a traumatic place. There is already enough trauma in our communities. This just adds more.”

The walk culminated at the Regional Food Bank of the Hudson Valley in Montgomery, where the Colavitos were joined by volunteers, supporters, and staff from the Cornell Cooperative Extension.

“We’re not giving people handouts,” Marty said. “This is about neighbors supporting neighbors. We want to remove the stigma and create a system where people feel okay asking for help.”

That message resonated with many. Over the course of the walk, they raised more than $13,000, a figure that surprised even the organizers.

Each morning, the couple rose before dawn, walked a stretch of 10 to 15 miles, then were picked up and driven home to save the cost of hotel stays. Every dollar saved was redirected to the cause. After four days of walking the sun finally broke through. 

Along the way, the Colavitos spoke openly about what they see every day. They deliver food throughout Sullivan County and witness firsthand the quiet struggles of working families, seniors, and individuals who, despite having jobs, cannot keep up with the rising costs of rent, electricity, and groceries.

“There’s this idea out there that people who need food assistance are lazy,” Marty said. “But the truth is, most are working—often more than one job. The math just doesn’t work anymore.”

“We see families who used to donate food now calling us asking for help,” Lynn added. “That should tell you something about where we are as a society.”

They spoke of clients who call them, not just to ask for food, but to check on their safety during bad weather, or to say thank you. And they shared stories of recipients who give away part of their food deliveries to neighbors in greater need.

“There is so much goodness in this county,” Lynn said. “We see it every day. People want to help, even when they have almost nothing.”

The route took them through Fallsburg, where the Democrat joined them on foot to document their progress. By then, the couple had walked eight miles, pausing only briefly for coffee before continuing on.

Marty criticized political leaders on both sides of the aisle for failing to address systemic poverty. He questioned why, during a government shutdown, lawmakers continued to receive pay while federal workers and SNAP recipients are left in limbo.

“How do they have time to go on recess when families are trying to figure out how to feed their kids?” he asked. “It’s immoral.”

He also pointed to local solutions. “We need more mutual aid, more direct connection. We need people to see each other—not through politics, but through compassion,” Marty said. “You don’t have to agree with someone’s lifestyle or politics to believe they deserve to eat.”

Lynn added, “This walk wasn’t just symbolic. Every step was for someone we’ve delivered to, someone who texted us crying because their fridge is empty, someone who just wants to feed their children with dignity.”

The walk ended at the food bank’s new warehouse facility, where the Colavitos and supporters were greeted by staff members and volunteers. Inside the massive space, which serves six counties in the region, shelves of goods stood ready for distribution. But even there, supply could not always keep up with demand.

Nicole Sharp, a communications officer at the food bank, noted that requests for emergency food distribution had increased in the weeks leading up to the shutdown. The food bank had organized pop-up pantries for furloughed TSA workers at West Point and Albany airports, and was preparing for its annual Thanksgiving distribution.

“We are seeing more need, more urgency,” Sharp said. “And we rely on community action like this walk to help fill in the gaps.”

Marty and Lynn hope that action doesn’t end with them. They want others to see how mutual aid can work, and how local effort can pressure political leaders to act.

“I don’t want anyone to feel the way I once did—hopeless and alone,” Marty said. “Support saved me. And now we want to be that support for someone else.”

Their walk might be over, but their work continues.