Cudahy parent pays off student lunch debt after hearing kids went without meals

CUDAHY (CBS 58) – A Cudahy Middle School parent is paying it forward to make sure students don’t miss a meal at school.

Shawn Bumgardner recently learned some of his daughter’s classmates at Cudahy Middle School were left with empty stomachs because they didn’t have money in their lunch accounts.

“I heard of a child at Cudahy middle school who was sharing their lunch with another child who couldn't afford to eat,” Bumgardner said. “As of May 21, if they were at a negative balance they would not be able to eat.”

That’s when Bumgardner decided to take action and pay off all the outstanding lunch account balances at Cudahy Middle School on Wednesday.

“There's no child that should go to school and be hungry,” Bumgardner said.

Parents and grandparents are taking notice of Bumgardner actions.

“It's good to know that we've got good people left in this world,” Susane Garcia said.

It’s a good deed that is inspiring others too.

“Always pay it forward when you can and keep moving forward because there's always positivity at the end,” Xiomara Diaz said.

Bumgardner says others have been reaching out to him to find out how they can help and it’s all to help make sure Cudahy students can focus on learning, and not their stomach’s growling.

“The future of our communities starts with our children and supporting them in their education can make a world of difference in any change we want in our communities,” Bumgardner said.

The parent hopes the Cudahy School District will let other parents know about the issue and start looking into a solution.