Years ago, in Whitinsville, the Rev. Alden Besse was asked to participate in a Memorial Day parade. “I thought, what can I carry? Lots of people carry guns and I’ll carry a pruning hook,” he recalled.

On Sunday, Oct. 24, some 115 Islanders joined the 20th Annual CROP Walk (Communities Responding to Overcome Poverty) for the hungry. Each participant was encouraged to find sponsors for the nearly seven-mile walk from St. Augustine’s Church in Vineyard Haven to Trinity Methodist Church in Oak Bluffs, and back again.

As an incentive, the Martha’s Vineyard YMCA offered five $100 gift certificates to the top fundraisers; three for participants under the age of 18 years and two for over 18.