LEE'S SUMMIT, Mo. — Families in the Lee's Summit School District will return to school after the holiday break without worrying about paying off lunch debt.
The Summit Church in Lee's Summit collected enough money from a special offering to pay off the every student's lunch debt account in the district.
"There are so many kids that may have started in a hole for 2020 and by paying a lunch debt, we allowed them to start with a blank slate," said Ryan Schreckenghaust, the executive pastor at The Summit Church.
Summit Church has partnered with Lee's Summit Elementary School for years by providing reading partners, lunch buddies, and funding various projects. This year church leaders decided to do something different and pay off student lunch debts.
"Someone in our church said, 'why just that one school?' So we decided to see how much it would take to knock out the debt for the entire school district," Schreckenghaust said.
Through donations, the church raised enough money to pay off the $18,950.28 worth of lunch debt in the district.
"It touches the heart because it's a basic need. The assumption is everyone has the ability for that, but that's not the case," said Mark Stoddard, whose family contributed.
At its Christmas Eve service, the church announced it would undertake another unique initiative in 2020 and collect offerings to help eliminate medical debt in the community.
"It's a great opportunity to be a blessing to someone else," Stoddard said.
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