Panhellenic Hunger Games Drive begins

University Panhellenic sororities have begun to compete in the Panhellenic Hunger Games Drive to see who can donate the most items to a nonprofit agency that helps low-income families.

United Community Centers Inc. will benefit from the drive, sophomore strategic communication major and Panhellenic Council member Laura Sirrianni said. Items such as food and school supplies could also go toward disaster relief in the Metroplex for areas affected by the recent tornadoes.

Junior finance major Kathy Schuele, who came up with the idea for the Panhellenic Hunger Games, said she was inspired by “The Hunger Games” book. Like the book, the sororities were separated into districts, or small communities, and would compete against each other.

The drive started April 4, Sirrianni said, and it would continue through April 28.

The 11 Panhellenic sororities received a district number from the book, Sirrianni said. Each sorority was tasked to bring certain items for the drive.

“We looked at what each district did from the book just to make it more fun and tried to make whatever they were going to collect kind of relate to what it was like in the book,” she said.

Sophomore biology major Coralee Toal said Chi Omega was named district five, which produced protein in the book. The sorority would gather peanut butter, canned beans and other protein-related items.

Sirrianni said other district items included canned goods, toiletries, batteries and school supplies.

In “The Hunger Games,” one district created textiles. For the Panhellenic Hunger Games, every chapter was required to gather T-shirts, Sirrianni said.

Toal said sorority members found it easy to get excited about the drive since they were fans of the books. The drive incorporated quotes and different ideas from the books.

Sirrianni said the Panhellenic Council created a point system to count the items collected. The winning sorority will receive a prize for its work.

“I think it will be interesting to see who wins and to see how many items we get to see if [the theme] really does help increase the amount,” Sirrianni said. “For me, what I’ve been most excited about is seeing how excited the council is about it because I think they are more excited about this than previous drives.”