(Help Unite Greenbelt With A Little Kindness)

Sunday, October 15, 2023, 1:00 pm

Residents of Greenbelt are invited to join the annual HUG Walk (Help Unite Greenbelt With A Little Kindness) this Sunday, October 15th  (Rain or Shine). 

People of all ages, backgrounds, abilities, ethnicities, beliefs and faiths will walk together in a public demonstration of unity and community strength. There is no cost to be a part of the HUG WALK except the energy and spirit of each individual joining in with their neighbors from across the city. 

The HUG WALK will begin in the Greenbelt Station area of Greenbelt by the Indian Creek Trail entrance located across from the Shell Station on Cherrywood Lane. Parking will be made available by Beltway Plaza in the lot next to the Shell Station. The walk will wind past Franklin Park, Buddy Attick Lake Park, the Roosevelt Center, Greenbriar and Windsor Green. Participants may join along the way until the walk concludes at Schrom Hills Park across from Hunting Ridge.

The HUG WALK was conceived as an antidote to the ongoing divisiveness and frayed social fabric being experienced in our country. RUAK (Random Unselfish Acts of Kindness) is organizing the walk. The HUG WALK is being supported by over 65  co-sponsors, including social, civic and religious groups.  This year the City of Greenbelt and the State of Maryland are partnering to promote the state’s initiative promoting health and wellness, WALKTOBER.

All Greenbelters are invited to participate in the HUG WALK in whatever way they choose. Join as a walker or cheer on your neighbors as they walk through your neighborhood. Show your city pride by wearing Greenbelt apparel such as a “Greenbelt is Great” shirt, a Greenbelt sports team uniform or other item.  Feel free to write inspirational messages or poems of kindness in chalk along the route.

The Greenbelt Connection will provide shuttle service from each of the join-in locations as needed. PLEASE Officers (Greenbelt’s finest law enforcement) will assist in street crossings. 

Middle school and high school students can earn community service hours by helping. If interested in volunteering, contact spreadruak@gmail.com. 

Following the walk, participants are encouraged to share their experiences, pictures and stories with the News Review or spreadruak@gmail.com. 

Hug Walk schedule 

1 pm. – Gather at the Indian Creek Trail entrance across from the Shell Station on Cherrywood Lane. 

1:30 p.m. – Walk steps off. 

2 p.m. – Join in at Springhill Lake Recreation Center 

2:30 p.m. – Join in at Buddy Attick Park parking lot. 

3 p.m. – Join in at Roosevelt Center. 

3:30 p.m. – Join in at Greenbriar Community Center. 

4 p.m. – Join in at Windsor Green Community Center. 

4:30 p.m. – Celebrate the HUG WALK’s finish at Schrom Hills Park. 

Feel free to contact me if you have any questions, Robert Goldberg-Strassler at spreadruak@gmail.com or visit RUAK.org