Irish man helps students with debts in memory of late wife
He is helping the students clear their lunch debts
An Irish pub owner in Oklahoma is helping students pay their debts in memory of his late wife.
Sean Cummings has helped clear the student lunch debts for thousands of students in honour of his late wife.
Sean, who grew up in Kansas City, is the son of Irish parents, who hailed from Co Galway and Co Clare.
His wife Cathy was diagnosed with gallbladder cancer, and in her final days, she brainstormed about her legacy with Sean.
“We really couldn’t come up with anything that could be solved. Rarely, in politics, do you get to do anything that’s monumental,” Sean told IrishStar.
When the couple heard that a young man’s high school transcript was being withheld because of a $2.50 in lunch debt, they were inspired to take action. They realised that if a student's transcript could be withheld over a tiny debt, there were likely more students who owed bigger amounts.
At the same time, both Sean and Cathy, as Irish and Italian restaurant owners.
“I never thought we’d get this far. I thought maybe like 10 grand - and mostly because people just loved her,” he said.
Cathy passed away on February 11, 2024 and Sean posted a GoFundMe page the following weekend.
To date, they have paid off student lunch debt in around 46 schools in the state, which he has personally visited to make the donations - accompanied by his and Cathy’s dog.
“As of today we are at a total of $94,500. We’re trying to increase that number to help a school that was affected by the tornado. They had their entire homes destroyed but still owe lunch debt, which is insane,” said Sean.