By EMILY SPARACINO / Staff Writer

MONTEVALLO – Wayne Price didn’t buy 50 breakfast sandwiches early one weekday morning in December for attention.

He didn’t buy them for widespread praise or because someone asked him to or even because he had planned to well in advance.

He said he did it because of his faith in Christ—and because he simply thought the 40-plus students he drives to Montevallo area schools on his bus route might be hungry after a system-wide weather delay that morning several weeks ago meant the schools wouldn’t be serving breakfast.

“When I knew they weren’t going to have breakfast, I just thought, ‘I would like a biscuit this morning; I bet they would, too,’” Price said.

He asked the manager of a local fast-food restaurant if the staff could prepare such a large number of sandwiches before he had to start his route, and they did, even while serving other customers.

Price, who works for Word of Life Fellowship, an international ministry focused on training and discipling teenagers and young adults, insists he is simply a “regular guy” whose Christian faith was the primary motivator behind his act of unconditional giving that has made headlines across the country the last few weeks.

“It’s purely because of my faith,” Price said, adding he’s been in the ministry for 15 years. “I believe Jesus Christ is the son of God, and I believe at Christmas we celebrate a loving God who gave his son so that we would have forgiveness. This is a reflection of my love of God.”

When he picked up his elementary, middle and high school students and told them he had breakfast for them, Price said they “glowed.”

“It was neat,” he said. “I got a lot of, ‘Man, you’re the greatest,’ and lots of fist bumps, high fives and side hugs. They were very appreciative. I’ve got some sweet kids.”

Montevallo Elementary School Principal Dr. Allison Campbell said her students were still excited about the breakfast surprise when they arrived at school.

“They came into school that day telling everyone about it,” she said. “I think this kind gesture really speaks to the community of Montevallo. He (Price) saw a need, and he followed his heart in doing that. He’s an inspiration to all of us.”

Campbell shared a post about what Price did on social media, merely to express publicly her thanks for his generosity. She didn’t know the post would receive attention from media outlets such as People magazine and the TODAY Show.

“One of the best parts of my job as principal is to be able to share how wonderful a staff that we have and that I’m fortunate enough to work with,” she said. “I just knew I wanted to share what he had done and express our appreciation for that. I had absolutely no idea when I posted the picture on our Facebook page that this positive message would reach as far as it had. It’s unreal.”

Price said the recent media exposure, although extremely unexpected, has allowed him to reconnect with people who came through the youth group at Wilton Bible Baptist Church when Price was the church’s youth pastor in the early 2000s.

“Now, they’re in their 20s and 30s, and they’re contacting me,” he said. “It’s been cool to hear about them and their families. That has been a real blessing to me.”

Price insisted he’s just one of many people connected to the schools—bus drivers, teachers, school employees and others—who try to make a difference in students’ lives on a regular basis.

“I’m really shocked that it went this far,” Price said of the story. “I love doing things for my kids.”