On a recent Campus Kitchen meal shift at the Unitarian Universalist Church in Canton, NY, around three dozen student volunteers served Cornish game hens, rice pilaf, vegetables and chocolate chip cookies.

Student Leaders Kathryn Seyfarth and Caitlin Christie sport the trademark hairnets and aprons

While they all donned hairnets, aprons, and gloves  to follow the standards of the National Restaurant Association, students did not serve meals in typical assembly line fashion. Instead, they became waiters for the evening, taking orders in an effort to encourage community interaction and reduce food waste.

A group of students prep garlic bread

When the Campus Kitchen at St Lawrence University first began meal operations early this year, the student group realized many of their patrons – which have grown from 20 individuals to about 70 – didn’t want to eat every dish they served up.  So students came up with a plan to take orders at the tables and keep people concentrated on the rare opportunity to interact with all types of community members.

CKSLAW is a different Campus Kitchen in that it only serves a congregate style meal once a week to a wide variety of clients. Among them are: residents of senior living facilities, young families, adults with disabilities, and transient individuals.

Student chefs learn the ins and outs of the kitchen

“It was a real challenge when we started,” said Sommerfield of the economic situation in Canton. “We don’t have a grocery store in town and are in an isolated, rural area. There hasn’t been a house built inside city limits in about 7 years.”

The Campus Kitchen set out to alleviate some of the hunger felt by the economically depressed area, serving a free meal once a week, providing additional meals for Habitat for Humanity volunteers, and looking for ways to expand their reach. At the end of March, students held a day-long kickball tournament and fundraiser that sent the winner home with a basket of baked goods, and allowed the  group to buy new shelves for its refrigerator.

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