Hungry Hens increases campus involvement

An online restaurant guide, HungryHens.com, is expanding its promotional horizons by linking restaurants in Newark to student organizations who are looking to fundraise. 

Although the Hungry Hens website is primarily used for students to browse menus and place orders electronically, university alumnus and Hungry Hens market manager Rhett Perry said he wants to increase the company’s campus involvement.

Perry said his goal is for students to use the Hungry Hens website as a guide to find fundraising opportunities. 

When Perry was a student, he said he noticed many student organizations struggling to raise money. He said he hopes his company can help point students in the right direction. 

“As I graduated, I kind of wanted to get Hungry Hens a lot more involved in the student life and the organizations and co-op organizations that try to raise money for extra services,” Perry said. 

He said that in the past, the university’s specifications for fundraising at restaurants were detailed and restrictive. The old system required students to hand out flyers and the event only lasted a few hours on a specified date. Now, fundraising can stretch over longer periods of time and allow for more freedom, Perry said.

Junior Nevin O’Malley, president of the Club Water Polo team said the idea of extending the duration and increasing the variety of the fundraisers held at restaurants is exciting.

“I think it makes it a lot easier and a lot more accessible because I know the team a lot of the time cannot go to these restaurants at the time which is specified,” O’Malley said. “That’s been a big problem in the past.”

He said he would consider booking a fundraiser with Hungry Hens and would use the money for new equipment for his team, such as goals or balls. 

Perry said his time spent at the university helped him understand how to effectively work with students in a professional setting. 

“It’s given me a great grasp of how students operate,” he said. “Being a student helped me understand what the average student goes through on a daily basis.” 

Junior Anthony Pedicone is part of the video gaming club Genshiken. He said they do not receive any funds from the university, so he is always looking for ways to generate money for the club. He also said he is interested in fundraising through a local business. 

Because of their limited funds, Pedicone said it became difficult for Genshiken to operate efficiently and provide their members with activities to attend.

“Last year the Smithsonian did a thing on video game art which we were never able to raise enough money for,” Pedicone said. “And this year we want to go to a video game convention.” 

Perry said he would like to stop instances, such as a group’s inability to afford an event, from happening to any RSO. He said he looks forward to providing organizations with effective and fun ways to raise money at local Newark restaurants.