Our Story
The first lunch debt relief foundation was started in Utah. UTLDR was founded in 2024, when DJ Bracken, a Utah father, learned that kids across the state were facing $2.8 million in collective school lunch debt. Imagining his own daughter skipping lunch or struggling to concentrate in class due to hunger, DJ felt compelled to act.
DJ requested a list of school lunch debts in each Jordan School District elementary school. He began paying them off one-by-one. This initiative laid the groundwork for the Utah Lunch Debt Relief Foundation.
Since then, they’ve expanded into Idaho and Rhode Island, raising over $300,000 and paying off 40 schools.
Today, the Rhode Island Lunch Debt Relief Foundation’s mission is to eliminate school lunch debt in Idaho, once and for all. Our team works tirelessly to build relationships with schools, identify needs, and direct funds for efficient, effective impact. We continue to pay off Idaho lunch debts school-by-school, while pursuing a permanent solution to the accumulation of debt.
We won't stop until we find a solution for all students across Rhode Island districts, ensuring no child goes hungry at school or faces lunch debt.
Meet The Team
DJ Bracken
FOUNDER
Kate
Liara Bracken
CHIEF CUTENESS OFFICER