[Script Info]
Title: 
[Events]
Format: Layer, Start, End, Style, Name, MarginL, MarginR, MarginV, Effect, Text
Dialogue: 0,0:00:00.90,0:00:02.57,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,When my first children's book was published
Dialogue: 0,0:00:02.57,0:00:04.29,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in 2001,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:04.29,0:00:06.51,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I returned to my old elementary school
Dialogue: 0,0:00:06.51,0:00:08.45,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to talk to the students about being an author
Dialogue: 0,0:00:08.45,0:00:10.16,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and an illustrator,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:10.16,0:00:12.90,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and when I was setting up my slide projector
Dialogue: 0,0:00:12.90,0:00:16.10,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in the cafetorium,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:16.10,0:00:18.15,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I looked across the room,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:18.15,0:00:20.76,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and there she was:
Dialogue: 0,0:00:20.76,0:00:23.28,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,my old lunch lady.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:23.28,0:00:24.19,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,She was still there at the school
Dialogue: 0,0:00:24.19,0:00:27.46,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and she was busily preparing lunches for the day.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:27.46,0:00:29.10,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,So I approached her to say hello,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:29.10,0:00:30.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and I said, "Hi, Jeanie! How are you?"
Dialogue: 0,0:00:30.99,0:00:32.56,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And she looked at me, and I could tell
Dialogue: 0,0:00:32.56,0:00:34.28,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that she recognized me,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:34.28,0:00:37.37,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but she couldn't quite place me,\Nand she looked at me and she said,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:37.37,0:00:40.13,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"Steven Krosoczka?"
Dialogue: 0,0:00:40.13,0:00:42.27,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And I was amazed that she knew I was a Krosoczka,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:42.27,0:00:45.70,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but Steven is my uncle who\Nis 20 years older than I am,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:45.70,0:00:48.84,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and she had been his lunch lady when he was a kid.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:48.84,0:00:51.34,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And she started telling me about her grandkids,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:51.34,0:00:54.05,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and that blew my mind.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:54.05,0:00:55.84,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,My lunch lady had grandkids,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:55.84,0:00:56.81,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and therefore kids,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:56.81,0:01:00.06,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and therefore left school at the end of the day?
Dialogue: 0,0:01:00.06,0:01:01.81,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I thought she lived in the cafeteria
Dialogue: 0,0:01:01.81,0:01:02.68,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,with the serving spoons.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:02.68,0:01:04.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I had never thought about any of that before.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:04.62,0:01:08.35,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Well, that chance encounter inspired my imagination,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:08.35,0:01:11.90,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and I created the Lunch Lady graphic novel series,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:11.90,0:01:14.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,a series of comics about a lunch lady
Dialogue: 0,0:01:14.08,0:01:16.68,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,who uses her fish stick nunchucks
Dialogue: 0,0:01:16.68,0:01:19.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to fight off evil cyborg substitutes,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:19.58,0:01:22.89,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,a school bus monster, and mutant mathletes,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:22.89,0:01:24.36,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and the end of every book,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:24.36,0:01:25.86,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,they get the bad guy with their hairnet,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:25.86,0:01:29.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and they proclaim, "Justice is served!"
Dialogue: 0,0:01:29.62,0:01:33.87,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Laughter) (Applause)
Dialogue: 0,0:01:33.87,0:01:36.48,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And it's been amazing, because the series
Dialogue: 0,0:01:36.48,0:01:39.37,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,was so welcomed into the reading lives of children,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:39.37,0:01:41.61,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and they send me the most amazing letters
Dialogue: 0,0:01:41.61,0:01:43.76,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and cards and artwork.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:43.76,0:01:46.24,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And I would notice as I would visit schools,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:46.24,0:01:48.79,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the lunch staff would be involved in the programming
Dialogue: 0,0:01:48.79,0:01:50.94,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in a very meaningful way.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:50.94,0:01:52.68,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And coast to coast,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:52.68,0:01:54.78,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,all of the lunch ladies told me the same thing:
Dialogue: 0,0:01:54.78,0:01:58.68,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"Thank you for making a superhero in our likeness."
Dialogue: 0,0:01:58.68,0:02:01.44,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Because the lunch lady has not been treated
Dialogue: 0,0:02:01.44,0:02:04.97,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,very kindly in popular culture over time.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:04.97,0:02:07.14,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But it meant the most to Jeanie.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:07.14,0:02:08.83,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,When the books were first published,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:08.83,0:02:10.93,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I invited her to the book launch party,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:10.93,0:02:12.74,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and in front of everyone there,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:12.74,0:02:14.04,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,everyone she had fed over the years,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:14.04,0:02:16.98,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I gave her a piece of artwork and some books.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:16.98,0:02:19.55,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And two years after this photo was taken,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:19.55,0:02:21.36,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,she passed away,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:21.36,0:02:22.45,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and I attended her wake,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:22.45,0:02:25.29,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and nothing could have prepared\Nme for what I saw there,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:25.29,0:02:28.77,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,because next to her casket was this painting,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:28.77,0:02:32.34,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and her husband told me it meant so much to her
Dialogue: 0,0:02:32.34,0:02:34.76,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that I had acknowledged her hard work,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:34.76,0:02:37.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I had validated what she did.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:37.62,0:02:39.52,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And that inspired me to create a day
Dialogue: 0,0:02:39.52,0:02:41.77,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,where we could recreate that feeling
Dialogue: 0,0:02:41.77,0:02:44.78,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in cafeterias across the country:
Dialogue: 0,0:02:44.78,0:02:46.43,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,School Lunch Hero Day, a day where kids
Dialogue: 0,0:02:46.43,0:02:49.29,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,can make creative projects for their lunch staff.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:49.29,0:02:51.50,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And I partnered with the\NSchool Nutrition Association,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:51.50,0:02:54.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and did you know that a little over 30 million kids
Dialogue: 0,0:02:54.62,0:02:56.45,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,participate in school lunch programs every day.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:56.45,0:02:59.80,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,That equals up to a little over five billion lunches
Dialogue: 0,0:02:59.80,0:03:01.30,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,made every school year.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:01.30,0:03:03.69,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And the stories of heroism go well beyond
Dialogue: 0,0:03:03.69,0:03:05.68,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,just a kid getting a few extra chicken nuggets
Dialogue: 0,0:03:05.68,0:03:06.84,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,on their lunch tray.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:06.84,0:03:08.55,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,There is Ms. Brenda in California,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:08.55,0:03:11.34,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,who keeps a close eye on every\Nstudent that comes through her line
Dialogue: 0,0:03:11.34,0:03:13.83,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and then reports back to the guidance counselor
Dialogue: 0,0:03:13.83,0:03:15.18,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,if anything is amiss.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:15.18,0:03:16.60,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,There are the lunch ladies in Kentucky
Dialogue: 0,0:03:16.60,0:03:19.24,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,who realized that 67 percent of their students
Dialogue: 0,0:03:19.24,0:03:21.21,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,relied on those meals every day,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:21.21,0:03:23.32,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and they were going without food over the summer,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:23.32,0:03:25.35,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,so they retrofitted a school bus
Dialogue: 0,0:03:25.35,0:03:27.10,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to create a mobile feeding unit,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:27.10,0:03:28.34,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and they traveled around the neighborhoods
Dialogue: 0,0:03:28.34,0:03:31.13,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,feedings 500 kids a day during the summer.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:31.13,0:03:33.73,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And kids made the most amazing projects.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:33.73,0:03:34.78,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I knew they would.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:34.78,0:03:36.39,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Kids made hamburger cards
Dialogue: 0,0:03:36.39,0:03:38.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that were made out of construction paper.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:38.38,0:03:40.29,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,They took photos of their lunch lady's head
Dialogue: 0,0:03:40.29,0:03:42.01,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and plastered it onto my cartoon lunch lady
Dialogue: 0,0:03:42.01,0:03:43.89,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and fixed that to a milk carton
Dialogue: 0,0:03:43.89,0:03:46.37,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and presented them with flowers.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:46.37,0:03:48.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And they made their own comics,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:48.38,0:03:49.74,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,starring the cartoon lunch lady
Dialogue: 0,0:03:49.74,0:03:51.96,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,alongside their actual lunch ladies.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:51.96,0:03:53.90,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And they made thank you pizzas,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:53.90,0:03:55.81,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,where every kid signed a different topping
Dialogue: 0,0:03:55.81,0:03:58.77,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,of a construction paper pizza.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:58.77,0:04:02.37,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,For me, I was so moved by the response
Dialogue: 0,0:04:02.37,0:04:04.35,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that came from the lunch ladies,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:04.35,0:04:06.23,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,because one woman said to me, she said,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:06.23,0:04:08.76,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"Before this day, I felt like I was
Dialogue: 0,0:04:08.76,0:04:11.20,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,at the end of the planet at this school.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:11.20,0:04:13.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I didn't think that anyone noticed us down here."
Dialogue: 0,0:04:13.58,0:04:15.44,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Another woman said to me,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:15.44,0:04:17.99,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"You know, what I get out of this
Dialogue: 0,0:04:17.99,0:04:20.94,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,is that what I do is important."
Dialogue: 0,0:04:20.94,0:04:23.28,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And of course what she does is important.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:23.28,0:04:25.39,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,What they all do is important.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:25.39,0:04:28.78,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,They're feeding our children every single day,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:28.78,0:04:31.24,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and before a child can learn,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:31.24,0:04:33.77,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,their belly needs to be full,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:33.77,0:04:35.54,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and these women and men
Dialogue: 0,0:04:35.54,0:04:37.47,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,are working on the front lines to create
Dialogue: 0,0:04:37.47,0:04:39.67,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,an educated society.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:39.67,0:04:42.44,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,So I hope that
Dialogue: 0,0:04:42.44,0:04:44.34,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,you don't wait for School Lunch Hero Day
Dialogue: 0,0:04:44.34,0:04:46.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to say thank you to your lunch staff,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:46.38,0:04:48.42,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and I hope that you remember
Dialogue: 0,0:04:48.42,0:04:51.27,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,how powerful a thank you can be.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:51.27,0:04:53.26,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,A thank you can change a life.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:53.26,0:04:56.47,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It changes the life of the person who receives it,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:56.47,0:04:58.75,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and it changes the life of the person
Dialogue: 0,0:04:58.75,0:05:00.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,who expresses it.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:00.38,0:05:02.73,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Thank you.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:02.73,0:05:06.73,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Applause)