Anonymous donor’s $7,813 gift pays off entire student lunch debt in Ocean View School District

Thanksgiving is a few weeks away, but many families in the Ocean View School District are giving thanks after an anonymous donor stepped forward this week to pay off the entire student lunch debt.

The district — which has campuses in Huntington Beach, Fountain Valley, Westminster and Midway City — received the $7,813.50 check Tuesday, according to a news release.

Though Ocean View “works diligently with families to reconcile negative balances and children are always provided a meal,” the donation “will impact more than 200 families that were struggling with negative lunch balances,” the district said.

“We are so grateful for this unexpected gift, and the spirit in which the donation was made is truly inspiring,” Supt. Carol Hansen said in a statement.

The district didn’t identify the donor but said he’s been a resident of the Ocean View community for 20 years and was inspired to help after reading about a Florida man who paid off the school lunch debt in his district.

“I want to encourage people to look around the community and ask ‘What can I do to make it better?’” the Ocean View donor said in a district-provided statement.

According to Ocean View, the donor said he “understands how critical the childhood years are for developing a love of learning and setting children up for success” and “wanted to alleviate some of that stress for other families so that children have one less thing getting in the way of learning.”

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