With the goal of connecting Oles across generations and making an impact on our broader community, St. Olaf’s sesquicentennial celebration has brought many new activities to the Hill and beyond. The Week of Service initiative featured many projects across the nation for alumni to participate in, particularly in California, Illinois, and Washington. On campus, St. Olaf hosted a two-day Days of Services initiative on April 21 and 22.
For the Days of Service, the St. Olaf 150th Committee brought a Feed My Starving Children MobilePack system right to the Lion’s Pause. The MobilePack allowed the campus community and the Northfield community to join in global service to help battle food insecurity.
The packing time began with a presentation and safety demonstration in Viking Theater, where the Feed My Starving Children volunteers explained the mission and practice of their Christian-based organization. Students joined staff — from departments including admissions, professors, and college administrators — in filling the MannaPack bags with vitamins, vegetables, soy, and rice.
“It was nice to see Northfield community members and faculty all doing something together,” said volunteer Ella Nielsen ’27. “Many people at St. Olaf already do a lot of volunteer work, and this was an opportunity for everyone to come together and meet new people.”
Students reported that the presence of the service organization directly on campus made the global impact accessible and helped expand their connections with current students and alumni.
Across campus, professors, coaches, and staff were adjusting their schedules to create space for students to attend and reflect on the service initiative. Visiting Associate Professor of English Dr. Nancy Simpson-Younger ’06 brought her Ethics and Renaissance Literature class to participate in the experience on Monday afternoon.
“At the end of semesters I like to do a unit on combining theory and praxis, and it was the perfect opportunity,” Simpson-Younger said in an interview with The Olaf Messenger.
The combination of philosophy and action is central to St. Olaf’s mission statement. According to Simpson-Younger, it connects back to the college’s mission in two ways.
“The first one is obviously doing things for other people, as the theme when I was here was ‘lives of worth and service’ and then the intergenerational connections,” Simpson-Younger said. “The school is always providing ways for intergenerational experiences that one may not realize, in terms of internships, scholarships, and this project was another example of that.”
St. Olaf’s mission “to excel in the liberal arts, examine faith and values, and explore meaningful vocation in an inclusive, globally engaged community nourished by Lutheran tradition” came into effective practice with the presence of Feed My Starving Children on campus for the sesquicentennial days of service.
