FLORISSANT, Mo. (KMOV) — A Missouri teen plans to pay off the school lunch debts for every student at his elementary school.
"Sometimes kids' only meal that they can eat in the day is at school, so if they don't have the money to pay for that then that is a big problem," said student DeJuan Strickland.
DeJuan says he used to be that kid when he was a fourth grader at McCurdy Elementary in Florissant, Missouri.
"I didn't even know like what could possibly be my next meal in the day and it was definitely a struggle," said DeJuan.
He had no money to fill the emptiness in his stomach while sitting in the cafeteria.
"Seeing all the other kids around me be able to eat their school lunches and I couldn't was, it was really rough. It was really rough," he said.
The now 14-year-old wants to save the day for other students who still have negative lunch balances ahead of the first day of school.
"Honestly, it would be a life-changing experience just knowing that I helped impact other kids. It helped them out in their lives," he said.
A superhero to stop child hunger, this teen comic book author is finding a way to fill a need. His GoFundMe to bring kids out of this circumstance at the lunch table has exceeded its goal.
After fundraising, DeJuan is now able to pay off every student's lunch debt at McCurdy Elementary School with a $400 personal check to the school's principal.
When asked what it means to him knowing that kids will have a cleared lunch balance on the first day of school, DeJuan said the following: "It is going to be an amazing feeling, just being able to see that kids can finally be able to eat school lunches and not have to worry about the money or cost of it will be amazing."
