Auburn's third annual Hunger Week, sponsored by the Committee of 19, kicked off last week on Auburn's campus.
The members of the committee organized events all week to raise awareness for hunger issues both locally and internationally.
Can good and monetary donations have been contributed by students and event participants.
Hunger week began with the Victoria's Secret "PINK presents the Beat Hunger Bash" and grill-off competition.
"I'm just there for support," said Harriet Giles, director of external relations for the College of Human Sciences, in reference to her involvement in the Hunger Week event planning and attending.
Lauren Wissert, senior in nutrition and dietetics and vice president of the Committee of 19, emphasized the dedication of the committee members to Hunger Week.
"Collectively, the members of the Committee of 19 have worked hard to make each event a success," Wissert said.
Harriet Giles, the advisor for the Committee of 19, goes into classes and speaks about hunger awareness, and she spoke at the Beat Bama Food Drive Kick-off.
The Beat Bama Food Drive is an annual event, where Auburn and Alabama compete to donate the most cans to the hunger cause.
"The Beat Bama Food Drive is SGA's big event, and we work together," Giles said. "I spoke at their Food Drive, and they came to our Beat Hunger Bash."
The Beat Hunger Bash kicked the week off.
Friday, the Women's Resource Center had an event on the Concourse called "Line Up. Stand Up. Speak Up. Against Hunger...a Women's Issue."
"Women lined the concourse holding hunger facts and representing those women affected by hunger," Wissert said.
Bread for the World was also represented during Hunger Week. The group did an alternative advocacy activity on Haley Concourse. Students were provided the opportunity to speak out on hunger.
"Normally, we think of advocacy as writing letters and so on," Giles said. "The Bread for the World representative was recording a video of Auburn students saying why hunger is an issue."
The video will be sent to the Alabama Senate and posted on YouTube as a method for bringing awareness to the hunger issue.
"The pharmacy school hosted a coin drop for students and faculty, collecting more than $1,200 in change," Giles said.
The money will be donated to the Beat Bama Food Drive.
Throughout the week, the Committee of 19 sold tie-dyed T-shirts emblazoned with "25 cents," representing the quarter it takes to feed a child in a third-world country for one day.
Local restaurants showed their support for Hunger Week. Chick-fil-A, Moe's and Bazilia's donated a portion of their proceeds during the week to the War on Hunger.
Sororities were encouraged to play Free Rice, a trivia game that donates rice to the hunger cause. For each correct answer, the Web site donates 10 grains of rice to the United Nations World Food Program. This helps feed a hungry person in the developing world.
"Student support has grown tremendously this year," Wissert said. "Every day more and more students want to become involved in some capacity because they genuinely want to make a difference."
Wissert and Emma Keller, president of the Committee of 19, organized the schedule for the week.
"We have had a part in planning each event, but the credit goes to each member of the Committee of 19," Wissert said.
The College of Agriculture provided a simulcast of the 26th annual World Food Day Teleconference in Comer Hall. The theme was "Achieving Food Security in Times of Crisis."
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