This week, SaLT (Service and Learning Together), a student-driven non-profit organization— celebrates “Giving Tuesday,” a global day of supporting our very own communities.
Aiming to meet families where they are, SaLT partners with North Shore School District 112 schools to make this possible. Supporting about two hundred families in need, they supply essential items such as food, household items, gifts, and warm winter gear.
“SaLT has eight guiding principles, but the one that stands out the most this week is communicating love,” said president and founder of SaLT, Ida Fiore. “Everything that we do, from the way we pack the supplies to the way the volunteers greet each other and meet our families, is about leading with love.”
At North Wood Middle School in Highland Park, the gymnasium is filled with hands-on volunteers packaging items and organizing donations. In addition, SaLT partners with Lake Forest Country Day School, with a food drive—providing blankets and colored bags that are used to fill with socks.
On Saturday, fifty teams of drivers will deliver those items to fifty different zones.
“The Day of Giving is the perfect opportunity to give back to our community during holidays; times when families struggle the most. We like to call it our ‘Super Bowl’ because of how wide-span this project is,” said junior Abby Uhart.
It started with just a small idea during the pandemic. Since then, SaLT has drastically increased the number of families it serves from 25 to over 700.
“I’ve been involved to some extent with SaLT since freshman year. Now, I am an intern. I’ve made so many meaningful connections by simply being a part of the organization,” said junior Reese Lindstrand. “Seeing how much of an impact simple things can make in someone’s life is something I find so inspiring.”
One of SaLT’s numerous programs is called “Love 2 Learn,” where children from kindergarten to 8th grade are tutored in math and English.
Furthermore, their “Take Care” program sent notes and support bracelets over the summer to the families of Camp Mystic in Hunt, Texas after it was heavily impacted by the 2025 Texas flooding.
“I receive hundreds of messages appreciating us for our work. I always share those messages with the team so they recognize how much they do,” Fiore said.
During the 43-day government shutdown, SNAP benefits—a government program that funds groceries for low-income families—was delayed. Even now, things haven’t been completely restored and the future of it is put in question. According to USA Today, there are 10 of millions of Americans vulnerable to losing their SNAP benefits again.
As SNAP’s benefits are still in question, SaLT’s “Shop N Drop” program successfully serves as a relationship-based food pantry, delivering to 720 families from Lake Bluff to Skokie every other week. In fact, as of November 22nd, SaLT’s made 11,280 deliveries.
“Community is built through kindness,” said Fiore. “Our mission is to empower students to make a difference in the world. My hope is that the volunteers walk away feeling like they’ve made a difference in someone’s day, and that the families feel seen.”
