The Civil War contest between Oregon’s Ducks and Beavers is not only being waged on the football field Saturday, Nov. 20, it’s already playing out in the residence halls. Students and staff from the University of Oregon and Oregon State University residential life programs are competing to see who can collect the most food to help feed the hungry in their local communities. "The Civil War game gives us a perfect opportunity to engage residence hall students and staff in a friendly and fun competition that benefits those in need," says Katie Bryant, UO assistant director of residence life. "This is a first, but we hope to make it an annual event since it represents a win-win situation for our universities and our local communities." Non-perishable food items are being collected in barrels at dining halls, students are fundraising to purchase food and, at the UO, also are pooling their meal points to be used by staff to purchase bags of rice and beans. "We started the contest on Nov. 8 and, while I won’t divulge the exact amount of food collected, it is very significant–in the order of tons–and we’re not done yet." The winning "team" will be determined by how many pounds of food were collected. Each team will send representatives to be present when the weighing takes place. Food will be weighed in Eugene at 4:30 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 19, at Food for Lane County, 770 Bailey Hill Rd., which will distribute it to the needy. In Corvallis, the weighing takes place at OSU and will be picked up by the Salvation Army, which will distribute the food to area needy. The winning team will be announced Saturday during the Civil War game at Autzen Stadium in Eugene. SOURCES: Katie Bryant, UO assistant director of residence life, (541) 346-5393, e-mail kbryant@oregon.uoregon.edu; and Scott Etherton, OSU assistant director of residential life, (541) 737-8734, e-mail scott.etherton@orst.edu.

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