Every year, kindergarten teacher Laurie Gurdal asks her students to write about their dreams. Last fall, some kids said they wanted to be superheroes; some wanted to be doctors; some wanted to be princesses. But one child said their dream was to have a refrigerator full of food.
“That broke my heart,” says Gurdal, 45. “He didn’t have any food to go home to.”
Her 22 students at PS 245, an arts and science magnet school in Brooklyn, N.Y., are mostly from low-income families. During the school year, all students received free breakfasts and lunches. When she had extras, Gurdal saved them for kids who were hungry to take home.
“I feel really bad for them,” she says. “It is so sad.”
In her 21 years teaching, she’s never had children come to school saying they’re hungry. But, due to the pandemic, she knew many families were struggling, and having to choose between paying rent or buying groceries.
“It’s really upsetting,” Gurdal tells PEOPLE. “I know nutrition is a big part of thinking and being able to come to school, and not worry about stuff like that.” So she started buying snacks for students out of her own money.
“Once I gave them the food, it felt like they had a reason to come to school, and they were more excited to be there,” Gurdal says. “It really perked them up.”
Buying snacks for students started adding up; the single mom of two girls, ages 14 and 21 spent more than $500.
“It was getting expensive,” she says.
By April 5, she raised $1,108 to fund her food pantry, from just two donors.
“I was really surprised,” she says of how quickly her goal was met. “There are so many generous people out there.”
She was able to give all 22 students a full bag of groceries, stuffed with everything from pasta to Pop Tarts, to take home on three different occasions.
“The children are happier,” she says. “When I gave them food, they were more happy to come to school. They weren’t so sad.”
On April 1, she launcheda separate fundraiserto raise money to buy snacks for her students. That one was fully funded on June 20, raising $253.
This fall, she and her colleagues hope to expand the food pantry, and give students a bag of groceries one Friday a month. She launcheda new fundraiseron July 8.
“I want to make sure my students are fed and have the energy to come to school and want to learn,” she says. “They’re good kids. They want to learn.”
source: people.com
