On October 1, students and faculty continued the tradition of the annual St. Luke’s Crop Walk. The event allowed community members to enjoy a beautiful fall walk on the Millerton Rail Trail while raising funds for the Corner Food Pantry in Salisbury.

St. Luke’s, founded in 1892, is a student-led service organization focused on engaging with the local community, promoting compassion for others, and teaching responsible citizenship. The club hosts weekly activities and annual fundraisers to better Lakeville and the surrounding area. These activities include playing with children at Housatonic Day Care Center or tutoring at Indian Mountain School and volunteering at the Corner Food Pantry.  This fall’s Crop Walk raised $800.

The food pantry is an all-volunteer driven organization that provides nutritious food to local residents in need. They are dependent on donations from private sources and the school is one of the Pantry’s most significant donors. St. Luke’s co-head Julia Widen ’24 said, “There is a lot of wealth disparity in the local area surrounding campus. While this region has its share of well-off second-homers, it also has people struggling to make ends meet. The profits from the Crop Way have always gone to the Corner Food Pantry, to help us do our part in solving food insecurity in our community.”

Instead of walking to Fairfield Farm as students did during Covid, the event was held in Millerton on the Rail Trail. This year, participants from other local schools joined the event for the first time. Students and faculty from Millbrook School and Salisbury School joined our community members on the two-and-a-half mile walk. Widen ’24 said, “[It was] a great success for our student body, as it allowed volunteers to socialize and collaborate with others for a good cause.”

Reflecting on her experience participating in the St. Luke’s event for the second year in a row, Kate Dana ’26 said, “The walk was a fun way to get off of campus, meet new people and spend time outdoors, all while focusing on doing good for others.”