The sound of basketballs and roar of excited players filled Woollen Gym on a chilly January afternoon as teams of UNC community members came together for Hoops for Hunger, a high-energy tournament with a powerful cause.
Eight teams battled it out on the basketball court for a chance to win UNC-themed gear. The “Hogs” team came out on top.
On Sunday afternoon, the MLK Jr. University Community Planning Corporation hosted Hoops for Hunger — a food and hygienic product drive founded last year to support Carolina Cupboard, UNC's community food pantry. In addition to other collection efforts, the organization aimed to gather 1,500 items this year — 500 more than last year.
“We wanted to come back and do it bigger and better this year,” Tray Good, a student success and wellbeing coordinator, said.
Players, faculty members and anyone living in the Chapel Hill community were encouraged to bring donations to the tournament. Each player was required to donate five cans of food to play causing players alone to gift more than 300 items.
While contributions typically benefit Carolina Cupboard and the surrounding community, the event took on greater significance this year. According to Briana Welsh, co-adviser for the planning committee, a decision was made to shift the focus of the donations to more urgent needs.
“I hope that we're able to pack this [tournament out] and be too big for Woollen Gymnasium over the years once people understand what this is for and why we are doing it,” Welsh said.
With many families still struggling to put food on the table after Hurricane Helene's effects in western North Carolina, the committee decided to extend support beyond Chapel Hill to this specific area of need.
“Once we saw that there was a need there, we wanted to step in and help there,” Good said.
