The high school years can be full overwhelming emotions. Being a teenager is hard. It doesn’t help that high school can be a daunting place. The intense whirlwind of emotions and hormones can be an isolating experience. But it doesn’t have to be.
16 year old Natalie Hampton created the “Sit with us” app to help people find a place to sit in the school cafeteria and hopefully, make friends. Hampton was inspired to create this app from her experience of eating lunch alone. She said she felt ostracized and embarrassed. She ate lunch alone every single day in middle school.
Her social life blossomed after she changed schools, but Hampton explains on her website “After I changed schools, whenever I saw someone eating lunch alone, I would always invite the person to join the group. Each time, the person’s face would light up, and the look of relief would wash over the person’s face. Some of those people have become some of my closest friends.” She felt like she needed to reach out. That’s why she created the “Sit with us app” which launched September 9
How it works
Sign in or register with your email or facebook credentials. Search for open lunch events or create your own. and chat with friends with coordinate lunches. This offers this and so much more.
People can designate themselves “ambassadors” and Ambassadors can choose to “open lunch” which signals to those searching for a place to sit that they’re welcome to join the ambassadors.
Students can create a personal profile and include their interests. Students can search for nearby ambassadors and open lunches. They can also add friends.
Sit With Us saves the users the embarrassment of looking desperate for a place to sit or feeling humiliated by public rejection. It’s discreet and meant to be a positive experience for all who use it.
In a world where so many people feel torn down, Natalie Hampton’s ‘Sit With Us’ app is a great example of how people can build each other up. Welcoming people to sit with you is one small but very meaningful act of kindness that isn’t easily forgotten. It’s nice to know that you don’t have to be alone if you don’t want to be. Thank you, Natalie Hampton.
Krissie Schmidt is a dreamer of dreams, freelance writer, and mother of three. When she's not busy saving the world from the monsters in closets or washing sippy cups, Krissie can be found questioning her choice of preset workouts while on her elliptical, cooking delicious southern fare, and unintentionally creating crafting fails. Krissie is passionate about writing and aspires to be a successful novelist.