If you’ve ever had a delicious gooey grilled cheese sandwich made for you right in Skidmore’s Case Center on a Tuesday or Wednesday afternoon, thank the FeelGood club. FeelGood, or “the grilled cheese club” as they are more affectionately known on campus, is a small club with a big goal: end extreme poverty by 2030.
The club currently exists on 25 college campuses across the United States and Canada, working to raise money for the Commitment 2030 Fund. Made up of organizations like The Hunger Project, Pachamama Alliance, CHOICE Humanitarian, and Water For People, the Commitment 2030 Fund is dedicated to ending extreme hunger and poverty while emphasizing sustainability.
All proceeds from FeelGood’s delis, where they make grilled cheese and customers pay “what feels good,” are donated and split equally among the four organizations within Commitment 2030. Plus, FeelGood’s ingredients are all locally donated, so that they are not only fresh but ensure 100% of deli revenue goes toward Commitment 2030.
“People say our grilled cheese is pretty good,” says club president Ella Amaral Lavoie ’18. Amaral Lavoie is hopeful for the group’s future after a successful last year raising $6,000, putting on events and doing a cookie delivery service for students during exam study days. While Amaral Lavoie notes the club is happy right now with their progress, “it was an ambitious year [last year] and a lot of work for us in the club, so in the future we are hoping to expand our number of members.”
Amaral Lavoie echoed this hope when asked what the Skidmore community could do to help FeelGood reach their goal of eliminating hunger: “Maybe just by simply spreading the word about us to increase our membership so people get involved.” FeelGood looks to draw in new members with their “combination of fun food-related accessibility and humanitarian non-profit efforts.”
Of course, you can also help FeelGood by stopping by the delis Tuesdays and Wednesdays in Case from 12-2:00 p.m. And when you can’t get enough, FeelGood meetings are Monday nights at 7 p.m. in Ladd 207, where members prepare food for the delis, plan events and fundraisers, chat and listen to music. According to Amaral Lavoie, you’re in for a good time: “We’re a pretty chill club; we have grilled cheese parties, we are not closed off and we love new people!”