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Intellect

Annual Hunger Banquet at BYU scheduled for March 12-13

The Students for International Development at Brigham Young University will host the 14th annual Hunger Banquet Friday and Saturday, March 12-13, at 6:30 p.m. in 3220 Wilkinson Student Center. The Hunger Banquet is an evening of culture, learning, and service.

Advance tickets for the Hunger Banquet are $6 or $8 at the door. To purchase tickets or to make a donation go to the Wilkinson Student Center information booth or 273 Herald R. Clark Building.

The keynote speaker will be John Hatch, founder of FINCA and creator of the Village Banking™ microcredit methodology. Currently serving as FINCA’s director of research, Hatch has also served as the organization’s president, and as chief of party for Village Banking programs in Guatemala and El Salvador.

As diners arrives, they are randomly assigned a first, second or third world status and a description of the socio-economic conditions for their status. Their dining experience is determined by that assignment.

"Participants gain firsthand awareness and empathy for world hunger by dining side by side in a room that is a visual representation of the world’s food distribution," says Ashley Barker Tolman, SID co-president.

Added to the fun, educational evening is culturally diverse entertainment. This year’s program includes the Break Dance club, Latino Dance club, Doumbe (African drums), the band Simple People, and Hare Krishnas performing chanting and a short skit.

Funds generated from the Hunger Banquet will be allotted to development and humanitarian projects worldwide.

Last year SID assisted Shanti Ashram's primary and secondary educational scholarship program in southern India; the Laura Vicunda Shelter for Girls, for scholarships to help the girls further their education; the Benin Development Trust and Fund, a community education center in a rural African village; and the Augustinian Scholarship Fund, to help young people from Hogar Infantil "La Gloria" and the surrounding community in Mexico to pursue their education beyond the sixth grade.

SID is a Kennedy Center-sponsored club composed of students interested in helping their brothers and sisters who are suffering from poverty. Club members, who come from various backgrounds and majors, meet each week to hear lectures, have discussions, and exchange ideas.

For further information, e-mail SID at sid-byu@email.byu.edu or visit online at https://kennedy.byu.edu/student/sid.

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