Letters of Love and Campus Kitchens Collaboration

St. Lawrence University’s Letters of Love Club is partnering with Campus Kitchens to add personalized seasonal spirit to the traditional meals. The Letters of Love Club held a meeting early in October for students to make personalized cards. A total of 160 letters were made, which will be sent with Campus Kitchen-made meals to Canton elementary students on Oct. 26 and local North Country families meals on Oct. 30.  

St. Lawrence Letters of Love President Cordelia Sherwood ’25 claims that the handwritten cards are supposed to bring joy to the recipients. “You are loved, you are strong, you are beautiful,” Sherwood says. Sherwood serves on the executive board of Letters of Love, a global nonprofit with 179 clubs in the United States whose members usually write handmade cards to children battling cancer and other serious illnesses.  

National Letters of Love Vice President Darby Sween exclaimed it is a special community to be a part of. “St. Lawrence is one of many chapters I get to work with, and I love seeing how SLU has chosen to integrate Letters of Love into the local community,” Sherwood says. Sween works closely with Sherwood to help St. Lawrence Letters of Love run smoothly.  

Campus Kitchens is one the largest clubs on campus with 264 members and is a student theme house at 72 Park Street. Sally Eggers ’25 is one of 14 students on the executive board and is the co-president of Campus Kitchens. “I deliver to the high rises in Canton and drop a bunch of meals that are later distributed in the buildings, and I also go door-to-door hand-delivering meals to families in need,” Eggers says.  

Campus Kitchens weekly volunteer Sadie Reimenhiemer ’25 is aware that food insecurity in the North Country is a constant battle, which she makes an effort to fight. “I really enjoy working with different age groups in our Canton community, where I am able to cook for families and elementary students,” Reimenhiemer stated. Student volunteers are able to sign up every Sunday on a weekly spreadsheet as a member of St. Lawrence Campus Kitchens.  

Faculty Advisor of Campus Kitchens Matt McCluskey spent every Monday this summer getting into the kitchen and chopping vegetables. “It is important that we maintain a dependable and consistent schedule because people in our community count on these meals,” McCluskey states. St. Lawrence Campus Kitchens team provides meals almost all year round to locals in need.  

Letters of Love will continue to have monthly meetings and post extra events, such as making holiday cards, on their Instagram @lettersoflove_stlawu. They are always seeking volunteers. Campus Kitchen board members are happy to add new students to their volunteer list, which allows members to stay in touch; their Instagram is @ckslaw. Sign up to volunteer for campus kitchens this week and help serve the local Canton community a personalized seasonal spooky Halloween meal!