LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — Students at Henry Clay High School participated in “No One Eats Alone Day” on Friday.
A team of students went around the cafeteria, encouraging students who were sitting alone to come and be part of their program. Students wrote messages that were posted on a mural.
They were asked to write about a challenge they are someone they know overcame. Other students wrote compliments and what they were grateful for.
“We are here to show anybody and everybody that may be struggling with mental health - whatever you may be having going on at home - that you are never alone in what you are going through,” said 10th-grade student Taniya Riley.
She explained that she used to be someone who ate lunch alone until she pushed herself to escape her shell.
According to the U.S. Surgeon General, the epidemic of loneliness and isolation in the United States has been an underappreciated public health crisis that has harmed the health of people and communities.
School Youth Services Coordinator Ciera Bowman said she sees social media as a major driver of the isolation many students face, along with lingering impacts from COVID.
