CWU Students Go Hungry To Battle Hunger

ELLENSBURG, Wash. - Beginning at noon today (Feb. 22), nearly 400 Central Washington University students began a two-day fast as part of a week-long CWU Civic Engagement Center effort to raise awareness and monetary support for the daily emergency and survival situations faced by individuals locally and abroad.

"This is well beyond my expectations," says April Williams, CWU Civic Engagement Center program coordinator. "So many students are involved and there is so much buzz around campus - the faculty, staff and community are all behind us. This is definitely going to be an annual event and will be a tradition here at Central."

During the "30-Hour Famine," which ends at 6 p.m. on Thursday (Feb. 23), participating students are not eating or drinking anything besides water as a way to replicate the disproportional availability of food in the world.

The CWU participants are involved in what is the largest fast in Washington and among the biggest of the approximately 2,000 similar events going on around the country, few of which are being held on college campuses.

"Usually, it's a junior high, high school or church program," says World Vision intern Danielle Martinez, who developed the program for Central, "so we're very excited to see college students and a large campus getting involved to raise money and awareness."

The 30-Hour Famine program was developed by World Vision, an international Christian humanitarian organization based in Federal Way, Wash., to raise money for and awareness of those in other countries that don't have the nutrition they need, or have been struck by famine. Deanna Neidlinger, World Vision program assistant, calls the CWU participation "unprecedented."

CWU student Mariah Torrez says she is fasting in order to "make a difference."

"I'm among a lot of people who, right now, aren't able to go to a foreign country to do service work," she adds. "This is something we are able to do in our own community to raise awareness."

CWU's 30-Hour Famine concludes with a "Hunger Banquet" on Thursday from 6 to 9 p.m. in the Samuelson Union Building (SUB) cafeteria. Based on global averages provided by the United Nations and Oxfam International, the same foods and food portions will be served at the banquet.

Tickets are a suggested $5 donation each and can be purchased through the CWU Foundation or the "Total Relief Week" information tables in the SUB.

"The banquet is designed to educate people on the facts and statistics about hunger throughout the world, including our own backyard," Williams says. "One hundred percent of the proceeds will be given directly to the Ellensburg FISH (Friends in Service to Humanity) food bank, Oxfam International and World Vision."

Contact: April Williams (509-963-1643/fax 509-963-1726/e-mail: takeaction@cwu.edu)

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