To celebrate Valentine’s Day, several groups on campus such as People for Animal Welfare (PAW), the Lawrence University Dance Team, Delta Gamma, the Appletones and the Student Alliance Against Sexual Harassment and Assault (SAASHA) held programs and raised money leading up to and on Valentine’s Day, Wednesday, Feb. 14.
In order to raise money for the service dog trainers on campus, PAW sold “puppy chow” to students, then the service dog trainers delivered the treats on Valentine’s Day and allowed the students to pet the dogs.
SAASHA collected “expressions of love” on Monday February 12 that were hung up on the stairs in Warch Campus Center on Valentine’s Day. Delta Gamma and the Appletones hosted Serenades for Sight to raise money by selling tickets from Thursday Feb. 8 through Tuesday Feb. 13 and sending the serenades on Wednesday Feb. 14.
“We wanted to collect examples of the myriad of ways individuals can express caring and affection to significant others but also friends, family, roommates and any other beloved people in their lives,” said senior Mallory Bryan, the current chair of SAASHA.
To collect “expressions of love,” SAASHA set up a stand near Andrew Commons for members of the Lawrence community to write expressions of their love for people in their lives.
SAASHA usually focuses on education and providing resources about sexual assault to students, such as Bystander Intervention Training, which teaches students how to successfully intervene in situations of sexual misconduct.
“This program was a step outside of what SAASHA usually does, but one of our members suggested it and it got a lot of support,” said Bryan about why SAASHA did something different this year for Valentine’s Day.
“Usually for Valentine’s Day, we have sent out valentines to everyone’s SPC with information about dating and relationship violence,” stated Bryan. “This program diverged from that, as it focused more on the ways we support each other within our relationships. I would love for this to continue—I think it is a lovely way to affirm the various forms of love we see within our community.”
