I’m writing in regard to the article today on free breakfasts. Does anyone else looking at this photo feel we could do better with the food choices we’re offering children? Most of the food and juice options are sugary and in single-use plastics. I’m not sure why cooked meals on site and reusable trays, silverware and cups sent through dishwashers and/or sanitizers have given way to so much plastic and sugar. We need better solutions to provide a healthy and less wasteful meal for our hungry students.
Rebecca Fredrickson, Burnsville
An article in the Oct. 26 paper detailed a new social media campaign where moms across the country are anonymously buying gift cards or leaving cash in baby items at Target and Walmart stores (”Gift cards in baby items pay it forward”). This started when a media influencer passed on the story of a young mother finding a silver clutch bag, price tag still on it, misplaced on a shelf in the baby aisle. She assumed that another young mom gave up buying the silver clutch in order to buy something for her baby. The influencer shared the story and it went viral with more than 20 million views, subsequently generating 150 TikTok videos showing people attaching money or gift cards to baby items in these big stores.
I had to reread this article to believe this is really happening. This is a very illogical way to help struggling young parents, although I’m sure that Target and Walmart love it. If helping needy parents is the goal, why not instead give money or gift cards to nonprofits that work with parents in need? They are easy to find (think food shelves, nonprofit clothing stores, churches, social service organizations, etc.) and they will make sure the financial help gets to the parents who need it, not just a random person who buys diapers or wants a silver clutch bag to go with their new dress and doesn’t really need help. No one needs a silver clutch bag. If that hypothetical young mom actually gave up a silver clutch bag in order to afford diapers, good for her. That’s what parents do and should do. That is not a real hardship.
I think this article says a lot about materialism, social media and the people who profit from it, and not much about how to recognize real financial need or effectively help others.
