“It’s gratifying that I’ve found some purpose,” he said
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NEED TO KNOW
- Chris Monroe, a retired firefighter in Missouri, has turned a beloved hobby into a special way to give back to his community
- He hand-carves wooden swords to help pay down student lunch debt at local schools
- Monroe said he learned how common school lunch debt is from his son-in-law, who is a teacher
A retired Missouri firefighter has turned a beloved hobby into a special way to give back to his community.
Chris Monroe, a bladesmith, started hand-carving wooden swords for his grandchildren in his garage, but word quickly spread among the kids in his neighborhood, per Aging Untold. So he started making more — and then a chance conversation with his son-in-law, Andrew Crawford, sparked a new mission for Monroe’s sword-making pastime.
Crawford, a teacher, told his father-in-law just how common student lunch debt is in schools.
“It’s often those kids who live on the bubble or on the cusp, just above the poverty line, or just above that threshold where we see the most school lunch debt,” Crawford told the outlet.
Monroe now takes a donation for every sword he makes and, at the end of each school year, he gives the money to local school districts to pay down student lunch debt. Each donation is made in a child’s name.
“It’s gratifying that I’ve found some purpose,” Monroe said, sharing that he gets texts and emails from kids about the swords and “where they take it and what they did with it.”
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While speaking with Aging Untold, he showed off one sword, which he called a “crusader sword,” that he had already put at least 25 hours into making.
Aging Untold expert Amy O’Rourke described Monroe’s service-driven hobby as “purpose in action.”
“It’s heartwarming to think of him taking that hobby and bringing so much to so many,” she said.
Touching on the relationship that Monroe has built with his young sword customers, O’Rourke added, “They send him messages. He messages them back.”
In the process, she noted, the retired firefighter is “teaching them about giving to others.”
“So, they’re seeing the swords, and they’re seeing the money that’s gained from selling the swords and paying off that school lunch debt,” O’Rourke continued. “So, empathy, giving back, connection. He’s giving all of that to them.”
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