Being an educator is a demanding job, but some teachers still go above and beyond for their students. Garrett Jones, a middle school teacher in Utah, was inspired to help some of his students with outstanding lunch fees and went to TikTok to see if he could encourage people to donate. The initial goal was $8,000, but in just a couple of days, he received enough contributions to reach over $30,000.
The viral video is only six seconds long, and features a text caption: “If 2,673 Venmo'd me $1, I could pay the outstanding lunch fees of every student in my school because the last thing a kid should be worrying about is how much they owe for meals at a place they're legally obligated to be.” Within 24 hours, Jones posted an update video, letting people know he was surprised and pleased that he already received $2,000 through Venmo and CashApp donations. This marker was quickly surpassed the next day when the number increased to $8,000, and the day after when he reached the $20,000 milestone.
“I think for middle schoolers, probably the only thing worse than being hungry is being embarrassed,” Jones says. “Being at the front of the line and hearing they have a balance is likely enough to dissuade some of them from even eating at all.” The seventh-and-eighth-grade teacher found out through his school's lunch ladies that the total debt was about $8,000, and even Jones expected to receive a couple of hundred dollars at the most. Now that he has accumulated $30,000 from small charitable donations, he can distribute some of the extra money throughout the Wasatch County school district to cancel more student lunch fees.
Garret Jones, a Utah middle school teacher, created a TikTok video to help raise money to pay off student lunch debt.
The video went viral, and after 24 hours, he already raised $2,000 in donations.
After 36 hours, Jones collected over $10,000 in donations—$2,000 over the goal of $8,000.
Watch on TikTok
In 48 hours, Jones received over $20,000 through Venmo and CashApp donations.
Watch on TikTok
So far, Jones has raised $30,000 in donations. He will oversee how the extra funds will be distributed through the Wasatch County school district.
Garrett Jones: TikTok
h/t: [Upworthy]
All images via Garrett Jones.
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