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Caring for Our Most Valuable and Most Vulnerable
Yesterday, a post appeared in the Tanglewood Moms group on Facebook.
It started, “Children Eat Free at Fort Worth area Chicken Salad Chick locations until SNAP benefits are restored.”
Per group rules, the poster made it clear that the post was not political. Meggie Schissler, the poster and co-owner of the Chicken Salad Chicks in our area, simply wanted to do what’s right.
“We [Meggie and her husband, John] have two young kids who are in FWISD, and we know how hard it is to be parents,” Meggie said. “We wanted to help if we could. It really does take a village.”
Until SNAP benefits are restored to Texans, any child who visits a Chicken Salad Chick location in Burleson, Fort Worth, Hurst, Midlothian, and Southlake) will receive a free Kid’s Meal. There is a limit of one meal per child per day, and the offer is for dine-in customers only. However, as the post says, “No purchase necessary, no questions asked.”
Photo courtesy of Meggie Schissler
The response to Meggie’s post was immediate and supportive. One member wrote, “Restoring my faith in humanity one chicken salad at a time.” Another wrote, “YES! I’m coming to support you tonight! Thanks for deciding dinner for me lol”
“We’ve been overwhelmed by the encouragement,” Meggie said. “It’s refreshing to see the community encourage each other.”
The idea of giving free food to children until SNAP benefits are restored is not a brand-wide move. Meggie said that the Chicken Salad Chick owner in Albuquerque started it yesterday morning, and Meggie and John thought it was a great idea. And each one of their 10 locations got behind the idea immediately.
“We have awesome teams in place,” Meggie said. “We threw this on them yesterday, and not one of them skipped a beat. Each of our stores has its own community, and they all want to support their communities.”
These days, it isn’t easy to find any good news. Our news outlets and social media feeds are full of bad news. Meggie’s post was a much-needed ray of sunshine in our doom scrolling. Kindness and empathy should not be political. A little compassion, a little love for our neighbors, can go a long way.
The post’s last sentence summed up that grace perfectly.
“Let’s help care for our children, who are both our most valuable and most vulnerable. They are our future.”
The Schisslers
Photo courtesy of Meggie Schissler
