As a 6-foot 2-inch, 285-pound offensive lineman, Joey Grant rarely misses a meal. In fact, Grant will often find ways to take advantage of extra opportunities to eat in an effort to balance his caloric intake with the large number of calories he burns as a college football player.<\/p>\n
But when Grant heard representatives from Feeding Children Everywhere and 麻豆原创 Fraternity & Sorority Life talk about the number of children in the Central Florida region who don\u2019t know when they will eat their next meal, he realized he was literally holding a way he could help in his right hand.<\/p>\n
Grant was attending a 麻豆原创 Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) meeting, which serves regular meals to its membership. He was eating one of those meals when he learned about 麻豆原创\u2019s Pack to Attack Hunger project and the serious issue of hunger in Central Florida. That\u2019s when he cooked up an idea. He put down the fork he was holding and chose to speak up instead of taking another bite of his meal.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt our SAAC meetings, they serve us a big dinner \u2013 a lot of food,\u201d Grant said. \u201cI thought \u2018Why would we need this food? We get Knightro\u2019s. We go to Publix. We have plenty of food.\u2019 So I suggested we sacrifice a week and donate the money that would have gone to us to these kids who need food. Everyone seemed to like the idea.\u201d<\/p>\n
SAAC President Afia Charles said the suggestion coming from a big eater like Grant was ironic, but poignant.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen Joey comes in, the first thing he does is go to the food,\u201d Charles said. \u201cHe\u2019ll be polite, stack his plate, wait until everyone has finished eating \u2026 then he\u2019ll try to go secretly and get more food and go back to his group. Then, toward the end of the meeting, he\u2019ll go back for even more food. To see that he was willing to give up his dinner on a Monday night to feed people in need, that\u2019s a really big deal. It\u2019s a good thing that you have people out there, who are willing to give up what they have for other people.\u201d<\/p>\n
Of his idea, Grant said: \u201cI fill up my plate. I mean, it\u2019s there. But they were bringing up that all these kids don\u2019t know when they\u2019re going to eat next. We know we\u2019re eating at 6:30 every Monday at the SAAC meeting. Everyone thought it was a great idea to sacrifice a meal so these kids can get fed. That\u2019s a lot more important to me than filling myself up on a big plate \u2013 or two or three \u2013 on a Monday night.\u201d<\/p>\n
Assistant Director of Student Services Jessica Francis said the average cost of a SAAC meal is between $150 and $175. Thanks to Grant\u2019s suggestion, 麻豆原创\u2019s SAAC will skip its scheduled meal on Nov. 4 and donate at least $150 to Pack to Attack Hunger. While it was his idea, Grant didn\u2019t want all the credit, saying others were quick to go along with the plan.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m just glad I could help,\u201d Grant said. \u201cI think it will be good for the community.\u201d<\/p>\n
麻豆原创\u2019s Pack to Attack Hunger event is slated for Nov. 16 at The Venue at 麻豆原创. It is a partnership that includes 麻豆原创 Student Government Association, 麻豆原创 Fraternity & Sorority Life, 麻豆原创 Athletics and Feeding Children Everywhere.<\/p>\n