'The Three Winners': Weekend food drive honors 3 Muslim college students killed in Chapel Hill

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (WTVD) -- The Annual Feed Their Legacy Food Drive in honor of three Muslim college students killed in Chapel Hill in February 2015 wraps up Sunday in Cary.

The nonprofit Light House Project is behind the annual food drive. It began eight years ago in honor of UNC-CH students Deah Barakat, his wife Yusor Abu-Salha, and her sister, Razan Abu-Salha who attended NC State University. The three were gunned down in their Chapel Hill home by neighbor Craig Hicks in what prosecutors and family called a hate crime against Muslims.

Hicks pleaded guilty and is serving three life sentences.

Since the food drive began in 2015, it has raised more than 300 thousand meals for The Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina in memory of the three students.

"We refer to them as The Three Winners," said Nadia Khan, Executive Director of The Lighthouse Project. "They were all about dedicating their time to helping others, feeding the hungry, doing service. It was important to them to bring the community together and do good together. And we don't want to remember them as victims of a tragic tragedy. We want to remember them for the way they lived their lives. So that's why we do it."

The Feed Their Legacy Interfaith Food Drive wraps up Sunday, February 26 with a drive through day collecting non-perishable food items from 10 am to 2 pm at 1127 Kildaire Farm Road in Cary. Donations are also being accepted virtually.