Hundreds of Elon University students gathered Sept. 3 for a service project aimed toward ending global hunger.
Elon University’s affiliate of The Campus Kitchens Project, a national organization focused on hunger, led a meal-packing event on Saturday, Sept. 3, for nearly 300 first-year and transfer students interested in service experiences related to ending world hunger.
Campus Kitchen at Elon University hosted student volunteers as they successfully packed 34,560 meals through the nonprofit organization Stop Hunger Now. Based in Raleigh, Stop Hunger Now has provided over 225 million meals to individuals in 74 countries since 1998.
At the event, Darron Stover ‘93, Stop Hunger Now program manager, led the initial discussion on the staggering statistics of hunger and starvation worldwide. One in nine people go to bed hungry every night, and nearly 800 million people across the globe are chronically malnourished. However, this number has decreased by over 150 million over the past decade, providing positive news for volunteers.
After the initial opening discussion from Stover and comments from Truitt Center intern Olivia Arges, students were educated on the proper meal-packing techniques, and the excitement began. The music blasted, and ear-to-ear smiles were all around the room. The biggest applause from the group of students ignited after the ringing of the gong, signaling 1,000 meals packaged. The atmosphere of the Stop Hunger Now event can only be described as upbeat, as students excitedly packed meals for people faced with food insecurity and hunger worldwide.
The meals themselves, about 29 cents each, consist of dehydrated rice, vegetables, protein and a special mixture of vitamins designed specifically for people who are chronically malnourished.
After the students enjoyed packaging the meals, the volunteers broke up into smaller discussion groups. Led by Elon Volunteers! executive board members and resident assistants, these groups discussed the root causes of hunger, as well as ways to aid hunger and starvation on a local and global scale.
The meals packaged by Elon students will be sent to Mozambique, in order to provide relief for a severe drought. This annual event is one of many opportunities throughout the academic year for students to address hunger and food insecurity through service at Elon. Felicia Cenca, Campus Kitchen coordinator, said, “This is just an initial glimpse into service opportunities for first year students. We hope that this event will inspire them to explore other avenues for service here at Elon, especially around food insecurity.”
According to Danielle Satterfield, student director of the Service Learning Community, the most rewarding part of the event is “seeing so many Elon students turning out to such a big event and working together for a great cause.”
To learn more about ways to become involved in with Campus Kitchen or Elon Volunteers! visit the Kernodle Center for Service Learning and Community Engagement website.