University of Arkansas coaches, staff and student-athletes teamed up with local volunteers to package more than 1.4 million meals during Razorback Relief: Operation Haiti at the Randal Tyson Track Center Friday and Saturday.
The 24-hour marathon event was organized to help feed the starving population of Haiti still suffering after an earthquake last January. Although the goal of 2 million meals wasn’t reached, the event managed to break the previous world record of 1.2 million meals set in Kansas City in January. The final count was 1,420,638 meals.
“I was confident the people of Northwest Arkansas would respond to the need and they certainly did in a big way,” Arkansas athletic director Jeff Long said.
The meals filled six semi trucks which are headed to the port in Florida where they will be sent via cargo ship to arrive in Haiti by July 10.
While the main goal was to provide food for Haiti, volunteers attending the event donated more than 2,000 canned goods that will be distributed in the area by the Northwest Arkansas Food Bank.
