If you thought the humble bagel had no other purpose than banishing those hunger pangs at breakfast time or after a Saturday night on the town, think again.

from TotallyJewish.com:

Big Bagel to Take a Bite Out of Poverty

The roll with a hole’s latest role is as the star of a World Jewish Relief fundraising campaign in partnership with the Jewish News which aims to take a bite out of poverty among deprived communities across the globe.

The charity hopes that in excess of 3,000 individuals will take part in more than 200 events across Britain during or around the time of the official Big Bagel weekend, 15-17 May, with a bagel bridge tournament, bagel buggy walk and bagel brunches among the 70 events already in the pipeline.

Schools, shuls and individuals are now being challenged to come up with other fundraising events inspired by the famous roll. Participants will also be encouraged to take the opportunity to raise awareness of the work of the charity, which currently offers aid in around 17 countries worldwide. Street kids in Rwanda and Jewish pensioners in Zimbabwe are among those currently being helped, while the charity also offers retraining for employment in the Former Soviet Union.