The mother-of-two, who worked as kitchen manager in Aurora, Denver, was fired on Friday after giving out hot lunches to poor students.
Explaining her choice to feed the children to a local TV station, she said: ‘I had a first grader in front of me, crying, because she doesn’t have enough money for lunch.
'Yes, I gave her lunch.'
According to the rules, the dinner lady should have given the child a hamburger bun with a slice of cheese in it and a small milk, rather than the hot meal she provided.
But Mrs Curry said she didn’t think that was enough to sustain the kid for an entire day, adding that she has previously paid for children’s meals out of her own pocket.
Parents are now campaigning to have Mrs Curry reinstated at the school, saying she should be commended for her compassion rather than punished.
‘If me getting fired for it is one way that we can try to change this, I’ll take it in a heartbeat,’ said Mrs Curry.
Cherry Creek School District, which is responsible for managing the school, said that the school provided hot meals to children the first three times children forgot their lunch money, but on the fourth time they provide a cheese roll and milk.