ECSU Hosts ‘Stop Hunger Now’ Community Event

On Sunday, Nov. 20, inside the R.L. Vaughan Center on the campus of Elizabeth City State University, hundreds of area residents gathered to “Stop Hunger Now.”

The event was organized by the faith community, led by The Rev. Hipp Barclift and The Rev. Chip Broadfoot. Hosted by ECSU, area residents, church congregations, and ECSU faculty, staff, and students gathered to prepare meals for the hungry.

More than 91,000 meals were packaged and boxed. Those meals are on their way to Haiti and the African nation of Zambia.

“Stop Hunger Now” is an organization that provides dry goods to be packaged as meals and boxed for shipment. They rely on churches and organizations to bring people together to package the meals.

The organization was first introduced to the region through Christ Episcopal Church in Elizabeth City a number of years ago. Each year members of the congregation would gather at the church to package the meals.

This year, however, Barclift and Broadfoot realized that by bringing their churches together – Mt. Carmel Missionary Baptist and Christ Episcopal – they could be more effective. They then turned to other churches and civic organizations and to ECSU for support.

For ECSU’s part, Chancellor Thomas Conway and Mrs. Mychele Conway joined other Vikings in the effort to package meals. Staff, faculty and students pitched in and while an entire community was doing something for the benefit of people in need, they also came together to demonstrate the importance of cooperation in the region.

As people worked, music played and volunteers danced, sang and laughed. The Center Players, the region’s children’s musical theatre program, entertained the crowd as well.