Celebrity Chef Offers To Hire Cafeteria Worker Fired For Giving Free Food To A Student

The story of a cafeteria worker who was fired by the school's vendor after giving free lunchto a student with zero funds in his account has gone viral. Bonnie Kimball was fired on March 28 by Fresh Picks, which supplied food the Mascoma Valley Regional High School in Manchester, New Hampshire, after telling a student "tell (your) mom you need money" but giving the student lunch anyway, according to CBS Boston. 

Kimball explained to The Associated Press why she gave the student a pass. "His family is very well known in this town and I can guarantee that if I called his mother, she would have come right in and paid the bill. But I didn't want to get her out of work. I know they would have brought the money the next day. The bill was going to get paid."

The company said it had offered to rehire Kimball, provide her back pay and would "work with the school district to revise policies and procedures regarding transactions," according to CBS Boston. Kimball hasn't heard of any job offer from the company and expressed no desire to get it back, she told CBS Boston.

In a prepared statement, the school district said any student who could not afford a lunch would be with meals, milk, fruits and vegetables.  

Kimball's story has gone viral, and even celebrity chef José Andrés took to Twitter to offer Kimball employment at his nonprofit World Central Kitchen. "The hero is Bonnie Kimball! If she needs a new job we have openings @thinkfoodgroup," Andrés tweeted.

Andrés is known for his humanitarian efforts which include feeding disaster-ravaged areas across the country and the world. Kimball has not announced whether she has applied for any positions within Andrés nonprofit since the tweet was published but there are opportunities available for the former cafeteria worker. 

First published on May 19, 2019 / 12:18 AM

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