NewsLab

With the posts pounded in, the slip cover in place and the deer netting strung, Saint Scholastica Sophomore Amy Skroch found an opportune moment for a picture. 

After working for nearly four hours on the construction of a fence at the Duluth Kid’s Cafe, a sense of accomplishment came from Skroch. “It’s just really enjoyable to be able to work with a lot of good people,” Skroch said. 

Skroch, as well as many Saint Scholastica students, took part in the first of two annual Community Days boasted by the college.  Accomplished on Wednesday, Oct. 6, 2010, Community Day at Scholastica is a day designated specifically to give students the opportunity to go out and do social work. 

The Damiano Center’s Kid’s Café, which is a program designed to feed children in poverty, received help from Skroch and seven other Saint Scholastica students on Community Day. 

“It was wonderful,” said Kids Café Program Coordinator Laurel Sanders. “They really did great work.” 

Kids Café, formed nine years ago as a part of a national Kids Café program, is an after-school program that evolved from seeing parentless children at the soup kitchen.  “It’s much like the Boys and Girls Club in a way,” Sanders said, “except we focus on giving each child a nutritious meal.”

Not only did the students help with food at the Kids Cafe, they students performed other maintenance jobs around the center. One group of students fenced in a children’s play yard, after an ash tree was uprooted in a storm.  “The tree was kind of our ball-stop,” Sanders said, “we really needed a fence.” 

The group continued on to remove daylilies from the garden, which were later given up for donation.  Another Scholastica group cleaned, restored and removed carpeting from a storage closet where the children kept their outdoor equipment and supplies.

The Kid’s Café benefits primarily from volunteering college students, usually as a part of coursework. According to Sanders, the Café is always looking for volunteers, particularly during the months on December and January. “It’s tough because many college students home on breaks,” Sanders explained, “but we’ll always welcome new volunteers.”