Ever since Mary moved to the United States year ago, she often heard the phrase "no thing as free lunch". While she understood this mean that you can't get something for nothing, heard other mothers at her child's school talking the free lunch program.

"How much does it to enroll?" Mary asked the secretary at her 's school. The secretary smiled and told Mary that didn't cost anything except a little bit of . In order to find out if Mary's child qualified to get free lunch at school, she to fill out a form. The form was in many languages besides English. It asked Mary questions like where she lived, how many children had, and what her annual income was.

Filling the form was easy, and Mary didn't have include proof of her income. She was worried if the information on the form would be with other agencies. The secretary told her that information was not shared. If Mary made below certain amount annually, her child could get free not just during the school year, but also during the summer, when there was no school.

knew this would help her family. While Mary work, she only worked part-time. Giving her child for lunch every day did add up and the family budget.

After filling out and submitting form back to the school secretary, Mary had wait a month or two before finding out she was qualified. A few weeks after she the form, a letter arrived in the mail. letter informed her that her child was qualified. letter also told her that her child could get free breakfast in school.