Missouri Western State University students organized themselves Sunday night into a fight against local hunger and homelessness.

A "food fight" competition will involve various student organizations that will collect food items for hunger programs throughout the week. A portion of the food will be prepared into meals for homeless individuals, according to student Tasha Hayes, an intern in the university's Center for Multicultural Education.

"On Saturday, we'll take some of the food items and prepare a meal for St. Joe Haven," Ms. Hayes said. The meal will serve about 40 men.

"We do give out a trophy," Ms. Hayes said. "It (food collection) has not been done in the last few years."

This is the first time the university has chosen to stage such a competition to collect the largest number of donated food items, she added.

The food fight kicked off CME's campaign during National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week. Each group collecting food gains points in the competition based on the item collected. Points are awarded for attendance at campaign events. Students are also asked to give up one or more meals on Thursday, and will be asked to donate funds by refraining from fast-food meals.

Student organizations drew slips of paper that described their food item to be collected, such as macaroni and cheese, mashed potatoes and green beans.

Melissa Leander, annual funds and marketing coordinator for America's Second Harvest of Greater St. Joseph, told the students how the agency aims to eliminate hunger.

"We are a warehouse for food," she said. "I get to be a voice for people who may not know where to go."

Second Harvest supplies food through such programs as Backpack Buddies for children on weekends.

"It really means a lot to these people who can't make it," Ms. Leander said of the students' initiative.

Representatives of the YWCA, Salvation Army and InterServ also spoke to the students about their agencies' programs against hunger and homelessness in the St. Joseph area.

For more information about Western's participation in National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week, contact the CME at 271-4150 or at cme@missouriwestern.edu.

Ray Scherer can be reached

at rscherer@npgco.com.