Students attended the 100th Candlelight service on December 8, 2021
On December 8, 2021, St. Lawrence came together for the 100th Candlelight Service in Gunnison Memorial Chapel. For the last century, the Candlelight Service has been a cornerstone of the St. Lawrence experience and the holiday season in the North Country, offering a pause for reflection before final exams and marking the end of the fall semester. The service also signals the beginning of winter and the promise of longer days to come.
John D. Brush, Class of 1922, and his classmate Stuart Winning, Class of 1921, have been credited with helping to organize the first Candlelight Service in 1919, at a time when the country was recovering from the impact of World War I and grappling with the deadly two-year influenza pandemic.
With the completion of Gunnison Memorial Chapel in 1926, and the addition of The Bacheller Memorial Chime donated that same year to the University by Irving Bacheller, Class of 1882, the daily ringing of the chime and the Candlelight Service have become two of the most beloved St. Lawrence traditions.
One hundred years later, the 2022 in-person service was a welcome return for faculty, staff, students, and the greater Canton community to the chapel to reflect on the challenges of the past two years and embrace the promise of longer days to come.
