I was recently required to attend a speech given by Kris Charles, the Senior VP of Kellogg Company. She was lecturing on how to build and maintain international relationships.
I know, it sounds riveting. That’s how I felt too.
I ashamedly drowned out the first 20 minutes of her presentation by checking emails on my phone, knowing that I did not have to write any sort of reflection afterward, just turn in a piece of paper with my signature at the end of the lecture.
But then she played a video.
It began with a catchy tune and seemed to be one of those happy-go-lucky videos where they have adults read cute things little kids say. And that’s what it was at first. Teachers read off a slew of student reactions to snow days, with most teachers poking fun at how much the students felt like they needed the snow days as a rest for their brains.
But then the lunch ladies came out.
They began reading student grievances against snow days because without school, they and their siblings have no way to eat for the day. One especially heartbreaking account tells of a student who doesn't eat his lunch and instead packs it up and brings it home for his brother to eat the next day when he knows a snow day is coming.
I had never imagined. And I could never truly imagine.
I found myself sitting in what seemed to be an insignificant lecture with tears silently rolling down my face because little kids who can't control how much money their family has or the conditions they live in cannot eat without free school lunches, while I complain about having too many meal swipes to use. The love and adventure of something so seemingly harmless as a snow day should not be taken away from kids. Snow days are the best. Or at least they are for those of us who are privileged enough to never worry about having something to eat.
I sat after the video ended and tried to imagine what it was like to be hungry. Like, truly hungry. And I just simply couldn't. I have been famished before, especially due to sports and college, because I simply haven't had the time to eat. But I have always been able to eat when I wanted to.
This video is just one of many in the new marketing trend that draws consumers in by raising their awareness to issues many of us cannot even imagine.
Ms. Charles continued after the video to talk about one of Kellogg’s philanthropies, Open For Breakfast. Kellogg raises money for and supplies hearty cereals to schools so children like those previously mentioned can receive at least one solid meal a day.
This speech and video opened my eyes to an often overlooked problem in the first-world country of America: staggering child hunger. But together we can stop it. Or at least curb it for now.
Can you imagine dreading snow days? Yeah, me neither. So make sure other little kids don't have to. Donate at: http://www.openforbreakfast.com/en_US/home.html.