Over 3,500 people banded together in the Boston Common to raise funds fighting food insecurity in Massachusetts in the 56th annual Walk for Hunger sponsored by Project Bread on Sunday.

“Every dollar raised and every Walker who participates today makes a huge difference in our year-round work,” Project Bread CEO Erin McAleer said Sunday. “It’s a tangible impact.”

Project Bread, a food security organization that supports children, families and others experiencing hunger in Massachusetts, aimed to raise $1.3 million through the walk Sunday. The event raised about $900,000 towards the goal as of Sunday evening, a spokesperson said.

The walk began in 1969 as the first pledge walk in the nation, the organization said. Walkers wind a three mile route through the Boston Common and the day includes family friendly activities, lawn games, live music from bands What She Said and Bad Bat, and a recipe demonstration from Chef Sherry Hughes.

The Common was packed with families and walkers moving through the route and enjoying the park Sunday.

Last year, the organization aimed to raise $1 million and had over 3,000 people participate in the annual Walk for Hunger.

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Fundraising will continue through the summer on projectbread.org/walk, the organization said.

“We need the public’s support to help us make a difference for the 1 in 5 families with kids who are worrying about putting food on the table,” said McAleer.

Thousands walk around the Boston Common in support of Project Bread’s 56th annual Walk for Hunger fundraiser. (Libby O’Neill/Boston Herald)
Walk for Hunger participants stop at a table of fruit set up along the route on the Boston Common. (Libby O’Neill/Boston Herald)