Ten Years of Friendship and Meals
Dorothy Hawkins, 95, opens her door three times a week to volunteers from the Campus Kitchen at St. Louis University. A resident of Council Towers, a senior living facility in the heart of St. Louis, Hawkins’s name has remained on the Campus Kitchen client list for over 10 years.
"I don't know what I would do without Campus Kitchen. I can't thank them enough for all they’ve done for me,” said Hawkins.
Hawkins, who is also blind, said that the Campus Kitchen feeds her the most well-balanced meals of her life, but the real reward is lasting companionship from students.“I grew up on a farm so we'd have to eat a lot of the same thing when it was in harvest,” said Hawkins. “The meals at Campus Kitchen are so well-balanced. I don't think I've ever been in better health."
St. Louis University students Hannah Wysong, a nursing major, and Emily Neustadt, a social work major, both look forward to bringing Hawkins meals and checking in on her every week. Last year Neustadt threw her a birthday party, and continues to regularly bake her pumpkin bread.
“I just love them, they are darling. They visit me whenever they can and they call me on the phone,” said Hawkins. “I'm alone except for them."