A 'Secret Santa' gave some struggling Pennsylvania families an early Christmas present by clearing all outstanding meal accounts for students at a Herminie elementary school.
The generous anonymous donor paid off more than $900 in overdue lunch fees Wednesday because he used to have a child in the school and “just wanted to give back to the district”, says HW Good Elementary principal, Amy Larcinese, who spoke to KDKA-TV.
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As well as paying the hefty cafeteria debt racked up by students whose parents can’t afford to keep up with the price of two school meals a day, the secret donor also paid for the lunches of one lucky child for the rest of December, who had an especially large bill.
"We're calling him our 'Secret Santa,'" said Larcinese to ABC. "We were stunned and so thankful”.
Larcinese said the random act of kindness helped 44 of the school’s 300 students from kindergarten through to fourth grade.
"We have a lot of families in really hard times right now, and he is making such a difference in their lives," she added.
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"A few families contacted us, saying how they were so appreciative of the help especially given the holidays," she said. "Sometimes, all we see are the sad things going on in the world, so it's really, really nice to know there are great people out there would give up their things to help others."