Saint Anselm College walk helps power city nonprofits

Dozens of Saint Anselm College students participate in the annual Road For Hope walk, which benefits nonprofit organizations including Rochester Recreation and Arena. (Courtesy photo)

ROCHESTER - The city's Recreation and Arena director announced on Wednesday that the Rochester Recreation Department will once again benefit from the charitable efforts of Saint Anselm College's Road For Hope program.

Every August, students from Saint Anselm College walk from Lewiston, Maine, to the college's campus in Goffstown to raise funds for nine nonprofits in Maine and New Hampshire.

According to the college, the journey is a modern-day pilgrimage that seeks to provide funds for those in need, strengthen community bonds and rekindle the belief that every footstep makes a difference. For the last 10 years, the money raised to support those steps has directly benefited Rochester Recreation and the residents it serves.

The 130-mile, week-long trek concluded Sunday and included a stop in Rochester, where the 46 Saint Anselm students spent the night at the Saint Charles School, which also receives support from Road for Hope.

Each year, Rochester Recreation staff members meet the Road for Hope students along their route to tell them about the Rochester community and the many programs and activities offered through their department. Recreation staff also provide walkers with lunch, generously donated each year by Rochester's New England Pizza.

"It has been a pleasure working with the students and staff of Saint A's through Road For Hope. Their generous support has enriched many of the programs and activities we offer, and I look forward to speaking to these students each year and sharing the great things we have going on here in Rochester," Assistant Director of Recreation and Arena Lauren Krans said. "Each year we strategize to make sure the funds are being used to support our mission to foster meaningful community connections, as that's a goal we share in common with Road For Hope."

Over the decade-plus partnership between Road For Hope and Rochester Recreation, funds have been used to support the department's many programs and facilities, including transportation for summer camp field trips and new meeting room signage at the Recreation Department.

"Road For Hope is such a unique experience, combining many aspects of what Saint Anselm is about - community, action, service, hospitality," Saint Anselm Campus Ministry Road For Hope Coordinator Riley Duggan said. "The students who walk are determined, strong, and inspiring. Each step they take - along the dirt roads, the paved roads, in the rain, in the sun and up and down hills for miles day after day - leaves an impact, on their own hearts, on the hearts of their peers, and on the hearts of the charities they are supporting."