Challah for Hunger
Source: Slingshot
It’s a simple recipe: get together with friends on campus, bake and sell challah, and donate the proceeds to a meaningful cause. Through Challah for Hunger (CfH), thousands of student volunteers gather to continue the centuries-old tradition of baking challah and engaging in social justice work. Launched in 2004 as a small initiative on one college campus,today, leaders at CfH’s 68 university chapters worldwide provide fellow students with low-barrierto-entry service opportunities that deepen their connections with the Jewish community. Because of CfH, 69% of participants have increased their involvement in Jewish life on campus, and 74% plan to seek out Jewish opportunities after graduation.
Students meet weekly, baking and selling dozens (and in some cases, hundreds) of loaves of delicious challah. Each chapter donates 50% of its profits to Mazon: A Jewish Response to Hunger and the remaining 50% to local organizations of its choosing, which opens the door to community-wide conversations about philanthropy among students and local nonprofit leaders. In the 2013-2014 school year, students have baked 47,000 loaves of challah and donated over $200,000. CfH empowers each chapter to build a program that meets the needs of its own campus, while receiving support, materials, and training from CfH’s national office and alumni advisors. While CfH continues to engage thousands of college students, it plans to celebrate its tenth anniversary by developing a CfH alumni network, aimed at helping young adults continue the CfH experience.
Learn more about Challah for Hunger & view video at their website.