During lunchtime at Silver Crest Elementary in Herriman, Utah, every child gets a tray, but not every family can afford to pay — one-third of students have lunch debt.

Nationwide student lunch debt has soared to nearly $200 million per year, according to a report released in August by the Education Data Initiative. In Utah, it's almost $4 million. As the bills mount, everyday Utahns are stepping up to make sure no child goes hungry.

"I thought that number seemed insane. I didn't think it was real," said single father DJ Bracken.

After finding out that one of his neighborhood schools was more than $800 in the red, Bracken decided to act.

"When I offered to pay it, it was sort of a surprisingly mundane interaction for how impactful it ended up being, because they're like, yeah you ca

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