“What if we got the whole town involved?” he suggested.
Two weeks later, we organized an event at the Merrill Fire Hall.
We called it Penny Saturday.
People brought jars, boxes, and bags filled with spare change.
Families worked together counting and rolling coins.
Dale sat beside Noah and Lily.
His large hands were terrible at folding the paper wrappers.
Lily patiently showed him how.
“No, Mr. Dale. You fold this part first!”
He tried again.
“Like that?”
“Almost!”
Noah burst out laughing.
By the end of the event, hundreds of volunteers had helped collect and roll enough change to make a meaningful contribution toward lunch debt at other schools.
What began as an act of humiliation had become a community project.
And Dale was one of its strongest supporters.
A few days later, I came home from work and found a truck spreading fresh gravel across my driveway.
Dale stood nearby.
