HOULTON, Maine — Students in RSU 29 who had unpaid balances for school lunches will see that bill wiped clean thanks to a recent grant.
The district had received a $10,000 grant from the School Lunch Fairy organization to pay off any outstanding balances for students’ meal accounts, RSU 29 Superintendent Ellen Halliday said.
“Although we now provide free breakfast and lunch to all of our students, we have struggled to collect the unpaid balances from those who owed [money],” Halliday said. “This is a huge help to our school lunch program, as well as to all of the families who had outstanding balances.”
The School Lunch Fairy organization was started by two high school students whose mission is that no kids should go hungry at school. The national organization collects money through online donations and then distributes that money to help school districts that have debt from unpaid lunch accounts.
“What an exceptional and worthwhile charity,” Halliday added.
RSU 29 is the second local school district to receive a School Lunch Fairy grant. In April, RSU 50 (Southern Aroostook) received an $18,000 award.
