On one night during the college's finals week, groups of youth and a few adults take shifts camping out in one of the school common areas with trays and trays of cookies for the taking. We listen to the students describe what they are studying and what projects they're trying to finish, and chat about their plans for winter break and the things they're looking forward to, or what they're taking next semester. It took a little time to grow this effort, the students being understandably wary of whether or not the cookies came with strings attached. But they don't. The cookies are string-free. We show up to say "We are here for you, we care about you, we know it's hard but you can do it."
