Event Highlight: UNC at the Piedmont Wildlife Center

As the school year comes to a close, the WILL WORK FOR FOOD reps continue to organize outstanding work efforts on their campus. Last fall, the WWFF group at UNC-Chapel Hill volunteered at the Piedmont Wildlife Center, a local nature conservatory.

This past Saturday, the group took a break from studying for their finals and returned to the conservatory once again to help the organization kick off their largest event of the year. The WWFF group, although small, was enthusiastic as they helped the Piedmont Wildlife Center run their annual "Celebrate Wildlife" benefit, a popular event that includes live music, animals, food, activities, and educational presentations.

Volunteers worked together to set up the benefit, doing everything from building stages and exhibits, organizing the parking, and cleaning up the grounds. The group has raised $100 so far, but more donations continue to come in.

Thanks, UNC-Chapel Hill for yet another successful work effort!

Do you want to bring the WWFF initiative to your high school or college? Become a Rep today!

If you want to know every time WILL WORK FOR FOOD posts something new to our blog, email willworkforfoodblog@gmail.com with the subject line "Sign me up."

Dance for a Chance: The Sylvania Southview High School Dance Marathon

The WILL WORK FOR FOOD initiative continues to thrive at high schools and colleges across the country. On Saturday March 27th, students at Sylvania Southview High School in Ohio blew us away with their energy, passion and effective fundraising efforts. 316 students participated in the school's fourth annual Dance Marathon, an event in which students give up part of their weekend and come to school to learn about troubles in our world, compete in a variety of activities and "Dance for a Chance." All without sitting down over the 12 hour stretch. Leading up to the event participants asked friends, family, neighbors, local businesses and congregations to sponsor their involvement with donations.

Molly Morse, a Sylvania Southview Alum and WWFF Headquarters team member at the University of Michigan, participated in Southview's "Dance for a Chance" in years past and thought it would be the perfect opportunity to raise funds for WILL WORK FOR FOOD. After explaining the WWFF initiative to Noah Bader, a Junior at Southview, Noah convinced his classmates to dedicate fundraising efforts this year to combat hunger and malnutrition. They decided for half of the funds raised to benefit their local community food bank and half to benefit malnourished kids abroad through WWFF.

Sylvania Southview has a history of raising a large amount of money through their dance marathons. Last year, the high schoolers raised $20,000, and this year they were determined to do even better. The students set the goal of $25,000: an ambitious goal, but by no means unattainable for a driven group of students with a great fundraising model. The students split into four teams (blue, red, green and orange) in order to create a friendly competition. Each team was led by student captains who helped recruit participants and organized fundraising activities during the school year.

After months of planning, March 27th finally rolled around and the 316 participants piled into the school's cafeteria decked out in their team's colors with spirited outfits. In addition to their fundraising efforts, participants also brought canned goods to donate to their local food bank.

The cans were used in a competition between the teams in which they built structures using the canned goods. The students used their creativity to form all different shapes and formations. One of the teams used their cans to form an outline of Africa with the word "HOPE" in the middle to help inspire the dancers and remind everyone what they were there for.

Molly and Steve Weinberg (WWFF CEO) went down to Sylvania during the event to teach the students a little more about malnutrition and how WWFF fights it. To illustrate the gravity of the malnutrition epidemic, Molly put things into perspective for the students. "Every 6 seconds, a child dies because of malnutrition," she told the group.

"Right now, there are 316 people in this room. That means that if you were all severely malnourished, it would only take 31 minutes for everyone in this room to die of malnutrition. In the 12 hours of the dance marathon, a total of 7,200 children will have died of malnutrition." The participants were stunned by the presentation, and although the statistics were difficult to hear, it seemed to help the students understand exactly how important their efforts are on a global scale.

"When I listened to the WILL WORK FOR FOOD presentation, I was really glad that Dance for a Chance was donating money to its cause. Some of the statistics Steve and Molly shared were a huge wake-up call about the type of problem that hunger and malnutrition are in the world," said Andrew Rothschild, a Senior at Sylvania Southview. "The organization really is doing a lot of good towards fighting a serious, yet often ignored problem." Eric Wolff, also a Southview Senior, told us "the presentation helped us realize why we do Dance for a Chance. We definitely picked the right organization to work with."

At 11:30pm (eleven and a half hours into the marathon) the participants gathered together and listened attentively to Steve Swaggerty, the teacher advisor for the event, announce the final amount raised. The students surpassed their initial goal of $25,000 and raised a grand total of over $30,806! Half of which ($15,403) to be donated to WILL WORK FOR FOOD. "To be honest, I got teary-eyed when I heard how much money we raised. It's amazing that only 300 people can make such a difference, " said Amy Horowitz, a Junior at Southview. "It felt great to not only reach a group goal, but to know that we're affecting the lives of so many other people that don't have the same opportunities we do. It's a truly touching experience."

We at WILL WORK FOR FOOD can't express how grateful we are to the students of Sylvania Southview High School for their passion, energy and incredible contribution to the WWFF initiative (their dance moves aren't bad either, check them out in the video below). With the end of the school year approaching, this really builds momentum for the summer and next school year. With the help of two other high schools in Portland and Baltimore, we expect to have a total of $50,000 raised by the end of April!

Are you interested in hosting a similar event at your school? Contact Molly Morse at mollyrm@umich.edu and get it started today!

If you want to know every time WILL WORK FOR FOOD posts something new to our blog, email willworkforfoodblog@gmail.com with the subject line "Sign me up."

Event Highlight: MCSP Soccer Tournament

WILL WORK FOR FOOD reps and participants continue to organize unique and creative opportunities to get students on campus involved in the WWFF initiative. On Saturday, March 13, the Michigan Community Scholars Program (MCSP) held their first annual soccer tournament to benefit WILL WORK FOR FOOD. MCSP is a group of UofM students who are dedicated to community service, diversity, and social justice. 15 teams of students and athletes came out to play in the 4v4 soccer tournament. Each team paid a $20 entry fee and brought canned goods to donate to local food banks. With the combination of entry fees and individual donations from players and spectators, the event raised a total of $350 for WILL WORK FOR FOOD. "The tournament was awesome!" said event coordinator Emily Knowles. "Everyone really enjoyed it and expressed that they hope we'll have another one next year. The cooperation between WILL WORK FOR FOOD and MCSP was great because it brought together two great organizations who care about their fellow human beings in the world."

Thanks to MSCP for coordinating such a successful event and to all the players who came out to support WILL WORK FOR FOOD!

Want to find WWFF events on your campus? Find a work effort now!

If you want to know every time WILL WORK FOR FOOD posts something new to our blog, email willworkforfoodblog@gmail.com with the subject line "Sign me up."

Participant of the Week: Lauren Yaffe

Since joining WILL WORK FOR FOOD, Lauren Yaffe, a 2007 graduate from the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, has raised almost $500 through a variety of unique work efforts. This past weekend, Lauren participated in the Martin Luther King Jr. Service Project in Chicago, Illinois. To learn more about Lauren and this very special service opportunity, we asked her a few questions and here's what she had to say:


Q: Where are you from?
A: I'm originally from Madison, WI, but now I live in Chicago, where I work for a mid-sized public and accounting firm.

Q: If you could meet one person, real or fictional, who would it be and why?
A: Oprah! I think she is such a strong and accomplished woman and I believe in a lot of the causes that she supports. I also enjoy her show and think that she would be fascinating to speak to in person.

Q: Tell us an interesting fact about yourself.
A: I've traveled to almost 20 countries and really enjoy going to exotic places! The coolest place I've ever traveled to was the Galapagos Islands, off the coast of Ecuador.

Q: What are your favorite pastimes?
A: Working out, arts and crafts, spending time with family and friends, biking, jazz dance, and trying new restaurants in Chicago!

Q: Can you tell us a little more about your most recent work effort, the Martin Luther King Jr. Service Project?
A: The Martin Luther King Jr. Service Project is to honor Martin Luther King, Jr. in the Chicago community. Participants were able to participate in a number of projects, such as painting murals, organizing a library, and making a fresh meal for seniors. Specifically, I painted a large canvas painting which will be hung in the hallways of Bouchet Academy, a math and science elementary school in Chicago.

Q: How did you raise money for this event?
A: I raised $370 this year for the MLK Service Project. I sent out an email to close friends and family educating them about my volunteer effort and asking for donations to WWFF to sponsor my work effort.

Q: Why are you interested in helping and participating in WILL WORK FOR FOOD?
A: I think the premise of WWFF is great - I get to volunteer for causes that are important to me while getting the encouragement and support of family and friends by having them donate to a worthy cause to fight child malnutrition abroad.

Q: If you could describe WILL WORK FOR FOOD in one word, what would it be?
A: Progressive

Do you want to join WILL WORK FOR FOOD in its fight against child malnutrition? Register and get started today!

If you want to know every time WILL WORK FOR FOOD posts something new to our blog, email willworkforfoodblog@gmail.com with the subject line "Sign me up."

Participant of the Week: Amy Verhey

Amy Verhey is a sophomore at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Not only is Amy a campus representative for the university, but with the help of over 6 sponsors, she has also raised a substantial amount of money for WILL WORK FOR FOOD. Since Amy is so active with WWFF on her campus, we wanted to know more about her involvement in her own words and here's what she had to share:

Q: What are you studying at UW-Madison?
A: I'm currently undecided, but I'm interested in psychology, communications, and Spanish. After I graduate I would like to continue my education in graduate school.

Q: What's your favorite book?
A: Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser

Q: What is your favorite band?
A: Dashboard Confessional

Q: What is something you would like to do before you graduate?
A: I really want to study abroad in Spain and travel all over Europe. I think it would be an amazing experience!

Q: What else are you involved in at UW-Madison?
A: I'm the Vice President of Communications for my sorority, Pi Beta Phi. I'm also a member of the Dietetics and Nutrition Club, as well as Associated Women of Communications.

Q: How did you find out about WILL WORK FOR FOOD?
A: I found out about WWFF through my sorority. After hearing about its great purpose, I decided to become a campus representative and help spread the word throughout campus.

Q: What has been your most successful work effort?
A: I volunteer at Wisconsin Public Television. I primarily help during the network's telethons by answering phones and receiving donations. Through these telethons, I also got sponsors to sponsor me using the WILL WORK FOR FOOD website. I e-mailed my family and friends, and was thrilled that so many people were willing to donate to such a great cause such as child malnutrition.

Q: As UW-Madison's campus rep, what kinds of projects do you have planned for this semester?
A: We are going to plan a large event for the beginning of the semester to really get people involved. We have so many student groups and individuals who are signed up to help us kick off our first work effort of the semester!

Q: Why are you interested in participating in WILL WORK FOR FOOD?
A: When I heard about WWFF I joined immediately and am so glad I did. The malnutrition epidemic is such an important issue that definitely deserves more attention than it currently receives, and I think that WWFF does a great job spreading the word to colleges all across the nation. Since all the money we raise goes directly towards Doctors Without Borders and the purchase of Plumpy'nut, I know that my contribution really will make a huge difference.

Q: If you could describe WILL WORK FOR FOOD in one word, what would it be?
A: Rewarding

Lucy's experience is a perfect example of how you can have an impact in your local community while fighting child malnutrition with WILL WORK FOR FOOD.

Register at http://www.willworkforfood.org/user/register today and start working for food! Try using the "Get Sponsors" email to find friends and family to sponsor your work.

If you want to know every time WILL WORK FOR FOOD posts something new to our blog, email willworkforfoodblog@gmail.com with the subject line "Sign me up."