Student Organizations Compete to Boost VCU’s 'Pound Out Hunger' Food Drive

By Mike Porter

Hunger can be a powerful motivator. Each year, hunger moves thousands of families to seek help from FeedMore’s Central Virginia Food Bank, Meals on Wheels Serving Central Virginia and Community Kitchen programs.

And yesterday, hunger for victory motivated one VCU fraternity to pull out all of the stops during a competition of student organizations to collect the largest amount of peanut butter and tuna for VCU’s “Pound Out Hunger” food drive to benefit FeedMore.

The student organizations competed to see which group could bring in the most peanut butter and tuna by 4:30 p.m.

At times, the competition gave the VCU Student Commons the appearance of a neighborhood grocery store, as students carried in bags and boxes of peanut butter and tuna for sorting and counting. Forty-nine cans here. Thirty-five cans there. A dollar dropped into the collection box.

At around 3 p.m., the pace picked up when members of Sigma Alpha Epsilon (SAE) fraternity showed up and started unloading two carloads of tuna. The procession of can-carrying SAE  fraternity brothers continued for about 15 minutes.

“There’s people in need every day,” said Eric Hallal, SAE Vice-President. “You see them walking around. You see them in Monroe Park. There’s people that really need our help. And it really takes a little bit of extra money, a little bit of extra time to go a long way and make a big difference.”

Hallal said members picked the shelves clean of tuna from three nearby Kroger Grocery stores.  

The 61 members of SAE had collected a whopping 885 cans of tuna and a much smaller amount of peanut butter. The fraternity also presented a check for $250 in support of the drive.

But was it enough to win? SAE members couldn’t be sure. A couple of members decided to hang around the collection center just to make sure there wasn’t a surprise last-minute major food donation by another organization. And despite late rumors that a competing Greek organization was racing from a bulk food store with a major delivery, SAE’s victory remained intact. The prize for their hard work was lunch with President Rao for 12 members.

“Everybody wants to help with the inauguration of President Rao and being able to each lunch with him with 12 members is going to be a fantastic opportunity,” Hallal said.

Hallal said the frenzied pace of the shopping, loading, carrying and unloading of the competition worked up his appetite – just not for tuna.

“I’m done seeing tuna for a while,” joked Hallal.

One Final Push:

The “Pound Out Hunger” food drive concludes on Monday, Oct. 17. Cash donations will be accepted at donation tables on Linden Street outside of the Student Commons and at the Floyd Avenue entrance to the Student Commons between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. on Monday.

Donors may also make cash donations online at www.feedmore.org/vcu. A $1 donation would count as 5 pounds towards the goal of 100,000 pounds. Or make a $10 donation by texting FEEDMORE to 85944. Every $10 donation can provide 50 meals through the Food Bank’s distribution center.

For more information, visit www.poundouthunger.vcu.edu.