Growing up in the Harrisburg area, Dave Astuto learned the importance of giving back from an early age. When Astuto, the son of a pastor, moved to Mount Joy 16 years ago, he wanted to connect with the community. His most recent effort directly impacts students in Donegal School District.

"I have four businesses along Main Street in Mount Joy," Astuto said, adding that he knew some people were experiencing severe needs and he wanted to help. "I thought, 'I'm just going to call Donegal up and see if there were any kids who were having trouble paying for food.'"

Astuto connected with Morgan Hiestand, director of food service for the district, who told him the need is great - and growing.

"Thankfully, with the National School Lunch Program, we never deny anyone a lunch," Hiestand said. "A kid can come up and get a lunch regardless of what their account is. We never say no."

However, each student who can't pay for his or her meal accrues a lunch debt, and that figure can add up quickly.

"Families are struggling to pay off their balances," Hiestand said.

That's where Astuto jumped in, donating $2,000 toward Donegal lunch debts.

"I don't have kids who go to Donegal, but I have a toy store, so the kids in the area are very important to me," said Astuto, who operates Dave's Toybox among other Mount Joy businesses. "I don't want to see a kid ever go hungry."

The mission is personal for Astuto.

"I was the kid in school that had to get free and reduced-cost lunch, and there was a real stigma with that. I hated that," he recalled. "When I got into 10th grade, I never went and got my lunch token, because it was a stigma and you were seen as a poor kid, so I didn't do it."

When Astuto and his wife, Joy Helsel, were first married, they didn't have the financial capacity to donate to community causes, although both still took active roles as community volunteers.

"Now that we are blessed the way we are, we want to take that stigma away and help people so that they can get the necessities they need," he said.

Astuto emphasized that his donation will be an ongoing one, as long as the need exists.

Hiestand is grateful for the support and noted that her cafeteria staff members appreciate it as well.

"We've seen an increase in families that are needing more support," she shared. "Every year it seems like there are more families that need extra help. They might not qualify for free and reduced-cost lunches, but there's still a need. My cafeteria workers are working harder than ever because our numbers of meals are increasing."

Hiestand said the community can support Donegal students in another simple way that makes a big impact.

"Giant in Mount Joy gives us a donation every year," she said. "When you're at the register and it says, 'Do you want to round up?' that money comes to us. If people are unable to give a large donation, they can support students just by rounding up at the checkout register. Rounding up those pennies does come back to the community, and a little bit can add up to a lot."

Astuto, who is on the board of Friends of Donegal, said he hopes to inspire other people, businesses and organizations to support Donegal students.

"There is a need, and we need to do what we can to step to fill the gap for that, especially people who have it to give. It would be awesome if other business owners did this as well," he said. "We're lucky enough to be in a situation where we have it to give, and we want to be able to give it to our community."

Along with the toy store, Astuto and Helsel operate The Joy of Sweets and Treats, The Astute Artisan and Dave's Cleanouts and Collectibles.

"The reason why we're successful is because people from our community come into our stores and spend money," he said. "It would be absolutely horrible if we didn't give back in some way to the people who are making us successful. That's really important to us."

Hiestand said she's been overwhelmed by Asuto's generosity and the support of other community members.

She continued by saying that a school lunch costs less than $3, which might not seem like much, but can quickly add up, especially for families with multiple children in the district.

"Even if someone wanted to just pay off a week of lunches for a student, that could be so helpful for a family," she said. "It's all about the community coming together to help. It's been amazing to see that we have people who want to help right here."

People who are interested in learning more about how to support Donegal students may contact Astuto at 717-512-9707.