When 7-year-old EmauniJ Manley noticed that some of her classmates couldn’t afford school lunch, she immediately thought of a way to help them. She then created an online fundraiser, and hundreds of people helped her surpass her goal.
“I saw some kids eating a cheese sandwich,” EmauniJ told NBC.
When she learnt from her mother that other kids didn’t have money to put on their lunch accounts, she decided, “I need to do a fundraiser so I can raise more money for the kids.”
EmauniJ and her mother, who also works at her school, started the fundraiser on Facebook to raise money to pay the unpaid lunch accounts of as many students as possible.
The initial goal of the fundraiser was $800, but a week after it was started, it had already reached more than $4,300.
Principal Ben Harrington praised EmauniJ for her efforts. He said, “It’s really cool to see a 7-year-old student taking the initiative to impact other students at the school.”
According to Harrington, about 100 students out of 500 receive alternative lunches, even though the school system is doing its best to prevent this.
“Elementary school students have a $25 deficit,” Harrington said. “They can go $25 before they get the alternative meal. Once you get into that deficit, sometimes it’s difficult to come back.”
Moreover, EmauniJ, who also became a published author of a book about having a positive self-image at the age of 5, is hoping she could raise more money to help her classmates in need.
