- United States
- Hawaii
- Letter
In this upcoming session, you must pass universal school lunches for our Keiki. For many students, school lunches are the only guaranteed meal they get that day. And for many others they are forced to starve, because either their parents can't afford the price of food, their parents don't meet the stingy requirements for food eligibility, or they can't afford to incur lunch debt. This hits hard for the people here in Hawaii because things were already expensive before we were hit by inflation. It's becoming harder for many families to put a roof over their Keiki's heads, and making sure that they are not only fed but are eating nutritionally. We can ease their burdens by ensuring families that in our care, their keiki's are not only getting an education but fed as well. Each one compliments the other, in Minnesota where the free lunches were provided to all children, teachers noted that their students were more engaged in class and getting better grades. To me it seems like a no-brainer, free lunches bring parents much needed relief, and empower our keiki. So coming months, when you are planning out what bills should be introduced, or what you are going to support. Please consider universal free lunches as one of them.
