March 3, 2014— — An 8-year-old’s “heart of gold” has touched

people all over the world with a campaign he recently launched

to help pay for lunches of students from low-income families.

Donations have increased tenfold since Cayden Taipalus –-

a third-grader at Challenger Elementary School — launched a campaign

two weeks ago called “Pay It Forward: No Kid Goes Hungry.” His mom,

Amber Peters, said nearly $7,000 worth of donations have purchased

hot lunches for more than 300 students with plans to reach another

5,000 this week.
Cayden started the campaign after seeing another student

at his elementary school in Howell, Mich., struggle to pay for their lunch.

“Cayden was in school buying his lunch and the little

boy in front of him had to put down his hot lunch due

to no funds on his lunch account,” his mom said about the encounter

on Feb. 17. “It upset the little boy, which in turn upset Cayden.”

Cayden and his mom started recycling cans and bottles to raise money

until friends and neighbors saw their efforts on Facebook and wanted

to pitch in. The outreach skyrocketed to the point where people

in Hong Kong were making donations.
Cayden personally delivers the money to each school before going

to class in the morning. His first donation was $64 that paid for

nearly 150 lunches, his mom said.

“Doing something little can turn into something big and go a long way.

Paying it forward is a big deal,” she said.

School officials said every student is offered an alternate lunch that

includes a sandwich, juice and fruit when they can’t afford the hot

lunch options. Nearly 30 percent of students in Livingston

County are enrolled for free- or reduced-priced lunch,

a federal program offered to students from low-income families.

“I didn’t even ask Cayden for a name [of the boy who inspired

the campaign]. I don’t want to make somebody look different.

Our target focus is on reduced lunches,” she said.