Challah for Hunger’s primary mission is to increase awareness and raise funds to fight food insecurity both locally and nationally. CfH’s national organization was founded in 2004 and was established at UVA in 2011. In the 11 years since, CfH at UVA has raised over $100,000 and donated 100% of its proceeds to both the Blue Ridge Food Bank, Mazon, and Swipe Out Hunger.
Each week, student volunteers gather at the Brody Jewish Center and bake challah, a traditional Jewish bread. We bake a variety of flavors including plain, chocolate chip, cinnamon sugar, garlic rosemary, and alternating specialty flavors of the week which can range from oreo, pumpkin chocolate chip, BBQ Chip, raspberry chocolate swirl, blueberry muffin, pretzel, and MORE. We also offer vegan versions of each of our flavors. Challah loaves cost $4 each and each dollar donated to the foodbank is equivalent to four meals for the hungry.
UVA students can get involved in a variety of ways, including coming to dough making on Tuesday afternoons from 4 to 6 p.m., braiding and baking on Wednesdays from 4 to 6 p.m., or tabling shifts on Thursday on the Lawn from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. First-years also are able to apply to be dorm representatives and spread the word about CfH to those in their dorms and assist in our marketing strategy. Dedicated students also have the opportunity to apply to our executive board and be part of our leadership team.
If you want to buy our challah, we encourage you to pre-order since some flavors get sold out fast. You can do this either by visiting our Instagram or website (where the order form is located) from Friday-Monday evenings when the order form is open. No experience or sign-up is required to volunteer, and we welcome all the help we can get! Visit our website at challahatuva.org, follow our Instagram @challahatuva, or email us at virginia@challahforhunger.org if you have any questions, want to pre-order, or be added to our listserv.
