Most high school aged children  are working, and participating in a sport/extracurricular activity directly after school. Most middle school aged children are participating in a sport/extracurricular activity directly after school. Most elementary school aged children can not be expected to pack their own lunches every day.
Families are pulled in all different directions. In most cases, both parents are working, or in single parent homes the parent is working long hours or multiple jobs. Regardless of the reason, packing a lunch is not always an option. Not at the high school, middle school, or elementary school are the kids provided with a refrigerator/freezer to properly store a packed lunch, or a device to properly heat a packed lunch. More and more family’s depend on the school to provide well balanced hot meal to fuel their child.
Chips and cold nacho cheese is not a meal, and can not be expected to fuel a child for the second half of the school day, then 2 hour practice directly after school.  Many parents and family members are at work from the time they drop their child off at school until 5:00pm, 6:00pm or even later making it very difficult to pack a lunch as well as something for after school and before practice. If you are someone who is fortunate enough to have a schedule that allows you the time and/or the finances needed to pack two lunches for each of your children every day, we are happy for you and hope that is always an option for you and your children. I just ask you to imagine you couldn’t. In extreme circumstances, school lunch is the only meal some kids have all day.  All year our children have been served pre-packaged, unhealthy, and often described as inedible meals. Children are choosing to not eat or are being told they’ve run out of lunches. They’ve complained on the schools multiple social media pages, parents have asked for change, and for answers without any change or response.  We must advocate for our children. Please join me in signing this petition and we’ll go as far or as high as we need to be sure our children are being provided edible and nutritious meals at lunchtime.