Student community service will be having its first ever 5k run to help promote hunger awareness within the Charleston community.

The 5k walk/run is called “Hustle for Hunger” and is scheduled for 2 p.m. Sunday at the Campus Pond.

Anyone who is interested in registering for the 5k has to pay a $10 fee.

Rachel Fisher, the director of student community service, said this was a new event her office came up with to help promote hunger awareness.

“It’s a new event that we are adding to our EIU Hunger Challenge Month,” Fisher said. “The group of students that worked on it decided to make a 5k to raise funds for our local food pantries, and what’s great is that every dollar that we get at the run will be turned into $10 worth of food.”

Fisher said registration for the 5k walk-run is $10, and those $10 will be turned into $100 worth of food for the community, including the Wesley Food Pantry.

“The purpose is to raise for the local food pantry, including the Wesley Food Pantry,” Fisher said. “Currently, we are accepting reservation but no reservations are required. We are please to have a good starting number and are very excited that folks will come and join us on Sunday.”

The 5k will also feature a few obstacles for those who are participating in the event.

“There’ll be three different obstacles along the way, and each on helps illuminate the challenges face by individuals who are in need of food support,” Fisher said. “They’re really simple, easy obstacles, but it is just a nice way to think about what challenges everyone faces, including our friends and neighbors who are dealing with being hungry and it happens to some of individual in our community and some we’re hoping this will help raise awareness about it.”

There will also be prizes given out during the 5k on Sunday.

“For the folks who participate in the 5k, we have some door prizes that are gift certificates for local businesses,” Fisher said. “It’s a nice way to come to not only help fight hunger, and maybe you might win a free gift certificate and you can go out have some of your own fun and have some fun.”

Besides the upcoming 5k on Sunday, Student Community Services will also be have hot dog stands every Wednesday during November from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. by Coleman and Lumpkin Hall, and there also be “Paper Plate Advocacy” every Thursday from 10 a.m. to the afternoon in the Bridge Lounge of the Martin Luther King Jr. University Union.

“We encourage everyone to join us on Facebook at EIU Hunger Action Team,” Fisher said. “We do events year-round to raise awareness, education and advocacy.”

Luis Martinez can be reached at 581-2812 or [email protected]