As any Rocky Mountain College student knows, the Cookie Table is a regular event that offers special treats every Monday from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. in or outside of the Student Union Building. What you might not know is that Kim Woeste, Rocky’s chaplain, runs the Cookie Table. Cookie Table has taken on different forms, but has persisted through the over ten years Kim has worked at Rocky.
As Kim stated, Cookie Table started with the intention of “creating genuine connections by being approachable” to overcome the notion that “students don’t always find adults to be particularly friendly, accessible people.”
Cookie Table has stuck to that simple intention. Kim notes, “I have often held pretty tight to the idea that it is really just cookies. You don’t have to talk to me. You can tell me how your day is going . . . or talk about important things . . . But if you don’t want to look at me while you take a cookie. You really can just take a cookie.”
To add a little variety to Cookie Table, Kim offers more than chocolate chip cookies. Some days she provides decadent homemade pumpkin bread (recipe attached below) or her personal favorite, the top-secret, made from memory banana bread. Now if you are not in the mood for treats at all, then there is one other “hot commodity” Kim offers—rubber ducks. When asked why the ducks are so popular, Kim responded, “I have no idea.” They started as an alternative to those that have allergies and now have become a staple of the table. Kim’s favorite ducks, you might want to know, are the superhero collection, including Batman duck.
Alyssa Ulrickson holding “Emotional Support Ducks” as she calls them.
You may have noticed the most recent addition to Kim’s cookie table, Samara Munoz, who works on mental health-related projects as Kim’s work-study. Samara has worked on uplifting students’ mental health through activities at Cookie Table such as D.I.Y glitter bottles, stress balls, and zen gardens. Take a break from your day by participating in these activities and use your creation as a healthy coping mechanism for stressors. With all these elements, it can be difficult to decide your favorite part of Cookie Table.
Encompassing the value of Cookie Table, Kim shares her favorite part, “There have been times when students gather around Cookie Table and it becomes a place where people laugh and talk.” Stop by Cookie Table and grab a treat or a duck. While I would recommend talking to Kim, you do not have to. You can take a treat and run!
Kim’s Pumpkin Bread Recipe
Ingredients:
- 1 ¾ all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
- 1 teaspoon of salt
- 1 (15 oz) can of pumpkin
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup packed brown sugar
- 2 large eggs
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
Steps:
- Preheat oven to 375*F. Grease a 9×5 baking loaf pan and line it with parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, whisk flour, pumpkin spice, baking soda, and salt until well combined. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together pumpkin, sugar, and brown sugar.
- Beat eggs, vegetable oil, and vanilla extract. Slowly mix in the flour mixture until there are no lumps.
- Pour batter into a prepared loaf pan.
- Should be done baking at around 50-60 minutes, until the toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Cover the top of the bread with foil while baking around the 30-minute mark if it seems as if the top is browning too much.
- Allow to cool. Slice and serve!