Parenting, Social Issues
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One of the best perks of being a kid is having no worries. Kids don’t have to stress about how they will pay rent, making sure they do their taxes on time, taking care of children or where their next meal will come from. Well, they shouldn’t have to worry about any of those things. But unfortunately, there are some kids who grow up in environments where they don’t have the luxury of coming home to a refrigerator full of food or parents who will pack them lunch every morning. In fact, there are many kids in that situation, as according to No Kid Hungry, as many as 9 million children in the United States currently live in “food insecure” households.
One parent on Reddit recently shared that their son’s best friend is one of those children. They noted that, in the past, they had been ensuring that the boy always got lunch, but recently, things have changed. The parent is now wondering if they were in the wrong for prohibiting their son for sharing food with his friend, and many passionate readers have weighed in. Below, you can read the parent’s full explanation, as well as some of the replies it has received, and an interview we were lucky enough to receive from Executive Director of Brown Bagging for Calgary’s Kids, Bethany Ross.
Then let us know in the comments how you feel about all of this. Have you ever helped a child who you knew might go hungry if you didn’t? Or do you know what it feels like to be the child left without lunch?
More info: Reddit
After deciding not to pack lunches for their son’s best friend anymore, this parent is wondering if they handled the situation poorly
Image credits: Hillshire Farm (not the actual photo)
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Adelaide Ross
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Adelaide Ross
Writer, BoredPanda staff
Howdy, I'm Adelaide! I'm originally from Texas (yeehaw!), but after graduating from university with an acting degree, I relocated to sunny Los Angeles for a while. I then got a serious bite from the travel bug and found myself moving to Sweden and England before settling in Lithuania about two years ago. I'm passionate about animal welfare, sustainability and eating delicious food. But as you can see, I cover a wide range of topics including drama, internet trends and hilarious memes. I can easily be won over with a Seinfeld reference, vegan pastry or glass of fresh cold brew. And during my free time, I can usually be seen strolling through a park, playing tennis or baking something tasty.
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Vėja Elkimavičiūtė
Vėja Elkimavičiūtė
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I'm a visual editor at Bored Panda. Looking at pets and memes is the best part of my work. I love to travel and want to see the world. Still looking and exploring stuff I like and want to do so thats exciting... and sometimes not
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Mad Dragon Mad Dragon Community Member Follow
My policy is to always feed the hungry kid. I don’t care why they are hungry, I feed the hungry kid. Two pieces of bread with turkey or a yogurt and a banana won’t put you into financial crisis. Report to CPS if you think there is a neglectful situation, but feed the hungry kid in the meantime.
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Well-Dressed Wolf Well-Dressed Wolf Community Member Follow
Yes! When I was in middle school (late 80s-early 90s), I had a group of friends. There were 5 of us, and two of the kids barely brought any food for lunchtime - sometimes just a baggie of chips or a juice box. The 5 of us always “pooled” our lunches and made sure everyone got equal amounts of food from the pool. We did this instinctively. Kids have to be taught to be a-holes.
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Mason Kronol Mason Kronol Community Member
I don't understand why this mom didn't at the very least get the school involved and make sure he was getting a free lunch. What did she think this child did on days her son was out sick? Also a lot of schools provide a breakfast before school. And like some people have mentioned it seems pretty obvious the kid is being neglected and the patents need investigated. He needs serious help, not just a meal.
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terri bauer terri bauer Community Member Follow
Because his parents have to fill out the paper work for free lunch. It’s a federal program that requires paperwork. Try turning someone into DCFS. They figure it out usually. That parent comes after you with a vengeance.
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Peter Elder Peter Elder Community Member Follow
Years ago, I was in Peter's situation. A friend would occasionally buy an extra sandwich, but then say he wasn't that hungry, and offer it to me. He was close enough to guess something was wrong at my house because I never had anyone over, but didn't know exactly what was going on. I had previously been in a church-run "children's home" that was worse than going hungry living with my mentally ill single parent. If someone had called CPS, I'd have worried about being sent back to institutional care and may have run away to live on the street. Situations can be complicated and reporting to CPS etc. can have unintended consequences (though I hope things are better now than when I was younger).
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Jessica Olson Jessica Olson Community Member Follow
That was much the same as my thoughts with all the people jumping straight to cps. If you see injuries ya, but if you have vague suspicions based on the reports of a 12-13 year old, you should at least be investing a little first. Like maybe try being a human and connecting with your child's "best friends" parents. For all she knows the kid did get lunch daily but didn't like it and preferred the food her kid had. I don't know how many days I sent a lunch and my kids brought every single piece of it back home... But after a year the family definitely didn't keep sending unused lunches. A 1 week warning you are stopping the double lunch is both easy and not that expensive.
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Mad Dragon Mad Dragon Community Member Follow
My policy is to always feed the hungry kid. I don’t care why they are hungry, I feed the hungry kid. Two pieces of bread with turkey or a yogurt and a banana won’t put you into financial crisis. Report to CPS if you think there is a neglectful situation, but feed the hungry kid in the meantime.
Vote comment up
104points
Vote comment down
reply
Well-Dressed Wolf Well-Dressed Wolf Community Member Follow
Yes! When I was in middle school (late 80s-early 90s), I had a group of friends. There were 5 of us, and two of the kids barely brought any food for lunchtime - sometimes just a baggie of chips or a juice box. The 5 of us always “pooled” our lunches and made sure everyone got equal amounts of food from the pool. We did this instinctively. Kids have to be taught to be a-holes.
Vote comment up
97points
Vote comment down
reply
Load More Replies...
Mason Kronol Mason Kronol Community Member
I don't understand why this mom didn't at the very least get the school involved and make sure he was getting a free lunch. What did she think this child did on days her son was out sick? Also a lot of schools provide a breakfast before school. And like some people have mentioned it seems pretty obvious the kid is being neglected and the patents need investigated. He needs serious help, not just a meal.
Vote comment up
79points
Vote comment down
reply
terri bauer terri bauer Community Member Follow
Because his parents have to fill out the paper work for free lunch. It’s a federal program that requires paperwork. Try turning someone into DCFS. They figure it out usually. That parent comes after you with a vengeance.
Vote comment up
29points
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reply
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Peter Elder Peter Elder Community Member Follow
Years ago, I was in Peter's situation. A friend would occasionally buy an extra sandwich, but then say he wasn't that hungry, and offer it to me. He was close enough to guess something was wrong at my house because I never had anyone over, but didn't know exactly what was going on. I had previously been in a church-run "children's home" that was worse than going hungry living with my mentally ill single parent. If someone had called CPS, I'd have worried about being sent back to institutional care and may have run away to live on the street. Situations can be complicated and reporting to CPS etc. can have unintended consequences (though I hope things are better now than when I was younger).
Vote comment up
62points
Vote comment down
reply
Jessica Olson Jessica Olson Community Member Follow
That was much the same as my thoughts with all the people jumping straight to cps. If you see injuries ya, but if you have vague suspicions based on the reports of a 12-13 year old, you should at least be investing a little first. Like maybe try being a human and connecting with your child's "best friends" parents. For all she knows the kid did get lunch daily but didn't like it and preferred the food her kid had. I don't know how many days I sent a lunch and my kids brought every single piece of it back home... But after a year the family definitely didn't keep sending unused lunches. A 1 week warning you are stopping the double lunch is both easy and not that expensive.
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