Smells of pumpkin bread batter fill the room as about 25 volunteers stir together multiple loaves of bread in the Campus Kitchen. People pose with bowls, mix and spatulas as their friends take pictures between mixing their batter.

The Campus Kitchen is an organization that serves the community of Kent and students on campus, whether that is through the pantry that provides people with fresh fruit and vegetables, meat and boxed food open Mondays and Fridays or through meals cooked for the community.

Stations were set up with eggs, boxes of mix, oil and water for volunteers to either pair up with someone else or work on their own. Volunteers mixed together several batches of bread, with at least 20 loaves prepared.

“Martin Luther King was all about helping others, so it seems like his purpose is for everybody to help one another,” said volunteer, Camelia Aldridge, a senior integrated studies major. “Plus community service is very important. We need more giving back and looking out for one another.”

The counter became cluttered with circular pans, square pans, loaf pans and even cake pans, filled with the pumpkin bread batter as the volunteers started to finish up, some making more batter, while others going to start washing dishes.

While the students worked toward finishing the baked goods, the motivation came from Martin Luther King Jr. and helping the community around them. 

“It’s always good to give back,” said volunteer Tori Patterson, a freshman journalism major. “Not for attention, but out of the goodness [of] your heart, just to give back to other people.” 

Contact Sara Crawford at [email protected].