Students at Massie’s Martial Arts in Hutto Texas recently participated in a “Spar-A-Thon” to help raise food donations for their local food banks.

Children from the 7-12 year old and Teens classes at Massie’s school sparred to see who could rack up the most points in tournament-style competition over the course of 90 minutes.

The students all received pumpkins for participating, and the students with the highest scores received the largest pumpkins.

The school held the food drive and spar-a-thon in conjunction with the national food drive efforts being organized through KOHunger.com.

As the founder of KOHunger, Mr. Massie said he had to set an example for the other schools who volunteered to hold food drives.

“The action was fast and furious,” said Massie. “At the end, all the kids were drenched in sweat, but they all had big smiles on their faces, too – because they know they’re helping out with a worthy cause.”

For more information or to donate, contact Mr. Massie at 512-846-1123 or visit MassiesMartialArts.com.

I am excited to say that while the site has only been up a few days, we are already seeing martial arts schools from across the country step up and volunteer to hold food drives to support their local food banks.

In light of the fantastic initial response we’ve received, I am extremely optimistic that we will meet our goal of 100 partner facilities who are actively working to end hunger in their local communities.

Thanks to Master Jeff Barnes of Community Martial Arts in Evansville, Indiana and Master Terry Davis of Del Rio Martial Arts in Del Rio, Texas for being among the first to step up and take the lead in partnering with KOHunger.com.

If you are a fighter, a martial arts school or fight gym owner, or an instructor and you’d like to get involved, simply click on the “Partner Application” link on the left to apply for partner status.

When you look at world hunger statistics, they are staggering. The most heart-wrenching thing about the world hunger issue is that children are the most likely to be affected by a lack of proper nourishment.

Some statistics estimate that over 15 million children die each year of malnourishment – and six million children a year under the age of five die from malnourishment and complications related to poor or inadequate diet.

These statistics are even more disheartening once you realize that every country has the potential to feed its every inhabitant. Of the fact that poverty and hunger are directly proportional, there’s no doubt – all you have to do is look to the homeless population or visit a shelter in a large urban city here in the United States to see the veracity of that statement.

So, it’s up to those of us who have been blessed with more than we need to share with those who don’t enjoy our economic status.

Support your local food bank, give to organizations who are working to end world hunger, and maybe we can erase some of these statistics on world hunger within the next decade.

It’s possible – all we have to do is care and act.

K.O. Hunger officially launched its website on October 21st, 2008. KOHunger.com will serve as a media outlet for information on K.O. Hunger, as well as a central hub where martial arts instructors can learn how to organize in their own communities to help end hunger.

“One school or gym can make a big difference in helping feed the hungry in their own community,” says KOHunger.com founder Mike Massie. “And, 100 or 1,000 schools united in an effort to help end hunger will make an impact that will reverberate nationally and globally.”

Massie expects interest and involvement in the hunger relief efforts of K.O. Hunger to reach internationally. “I personally work with around 100 martial arts instructors worldwide as a coach and mentor. My own email newsletter reaches thousands more, and I know we’re going to make a huge difference for a lot of hungry families this holiday season.”

For more information, visit http://kohunger.com and click on “Get Involved”.