In the wake of the police-related killing of Philando Castile several fundraisers have been set up in his name. One fundraiser was quickly announced for his daughter, who witnessed his death on July 6, 2016 in St. Paul, Minnesota.
Last month, Pamela Fergus, a psychology professor at Inver Hills Community College, launched a fundraiser that would help the students who knew Castile very well when he worked as their nutrition services supervisor at J.J. Hill Montessori Magnet in St. Paul. The YouCaring fundraiser, which has a goal of $100,000 (originally it was $5,000) has already raised more than $72,000.
"Philando was 'Mr. Phil' to the students at J.J. Hill," Fergus wrote on YouCaring. "He supervised their food program and interacted with the kids every day. He knew their names and their diets. He LOVED his job! Philando's death affected every one of those kids. This fund hopes to provide the kids with a lasting connection to Mr. Phil."
On Friday, Valerie Castile, Philando's mother, presented the students of J.J. Hill $10,000 that will go toward eliminating the students' entire lunch debt, the Star Tribune reports. They also report that the rest of the money will "significantly reduce other student lunch debts across the St. Paul district."
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The Star Tribune reports that roughly 2,000 students, who qualify for free lunches but do not apply for a variety of reasons, end up with a debt to the school at the end of the year.
"No child should go hungry," Valerie said, according to the Star Tribune. "And this project helps keep my son alive."
Related: Jeronimo Yanez, Officer Who Killed Philando Castile, Receives Buyout Offer
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