Jesse Schmitt sees more to Humans vs. Zombies than just a bunch of people playing tag with NERF guns and socks.
Schmitt and his group of players teamed up with Stephanie Covey and her Backpack Club to collect cans to feed hungry children in Alachua County.
The drive began Sept. 20 and will continue until Nov. 3., and more than 20 bags of cans were collected during the first week.
Gators Humans vs. Zombies had 900 active players at the last game and has more than 1,700 fans on its Facebook page.
“Once I saw that the group was going to be as big as it was, I realized we could really make a difference,” said Schmitt, who is the president of Gators Humans vs. Zombies.
Schmitt told his members that he would give the person who collected the most cans a “bonus” on the first day of the next game: the ability for humans to be allowed to carry NERF guns, which they currently cannot do.
The Backpack Club currently feeds 60 children: 40 at the A. Quinn Jones Center and 20 at Littlewood Elementary. With Schmitt and his Humans vs. Zombies group helping out, that number could easily reach 100, Covey said.
Covey, who created Backpack Club Inc., wants to see her club grow larger and reach a national audience one day.
Her goal is to end hunger altogether for children.
“I want it to no longer be a need,” she said.
