World hunger is subject of Friday NMCC lecture

Northern Maine Community College humanities instructor David Raymond will lead a discussion on world hunger on Friday, April 25, at noontime at the Christie Lecture hall at the college.     The day marks the first of a two-day, 30-hour fast that Raymond is undertaking as part of World Vision’s 30 Hour Famine, an annual effort to raise awareness and money to fight hunger both overseas and in the United States.
Wars and natural disasters all over the world dominate the daily headlines, but behind the scenes and far from the spotlight, hunger and preventable diseases claim the lives of 29,000 of the world’s children every day. Of those, 15,500 die as a result of malnutrition.
During his discussion, Raymond will provide a brief overview of the topic of world hunger and then examine the topic from a moral perspective. He invites members of the campus community as well as the general public to come and take part in the noon gathering. Although the event is free, those attending are encouraged to donate the money they would typically spend for lunch to 30 Hour Famine. As an added bonus, Raymond has announced that all money donated on April 25 will be matched dollar for dollar by an anonymous local donor.
Every dollar donated makes a difference! One dollar will feed a child for a day, so $7 feeds a child for a week, and for only $30, you can feed a child for a month, according to information from World Vision.
In addition to his efforts to raise money and awareness regarding world hunger, Raymond is undertaking this project as a model for students in his ethics class. He has challenged the class to apply moral theory to real life, requiring each of his students to complete a service learning project, doing at least one act of ‘goodness’ to someone other than an immediate family member, close friend or social organization that he or she already supports.
“Many people see morality as a list of ‘thou shalt nots’ or rules designed to keep society from falling apart. This casts the whole enterprise of moral thinking and living in a negative light,” explains Raymond.  “I want to challenge my students to see morality as a positive mandate to do good for others and not just a necessary restraint against bad conduct. I want them to see that the moral life and the good life are one and the same. The best and most practical way to do this is by having them experience the moral life firsthand through an act of goodness for others. That is the purpose of the service learning project, to get my students to put into practice the moral theory that they have been studying for the past few weeks.”
While some of his students may opt to join Raymond in his efforts, others are making commitments to other organizations to which they have an affinity, such as the soup kitchen, the animal shelter, their church or their children’s school.
“I’ve always stressed to my students that what we learn in ethics is not an academic exercise, it is a way of thinking to better their daily lives,” said Raymond.
For more information, contact  the College Relations Office at 768-2809.