Mom With 16 Children Accused of Hoarding Groceries Writes Heartfelt Response on Facebook

Illustration - Joni Hanebutt/Shutterstock

During the current global pandemic caused by the virus, government officials and store managers alike have been imploring that people learn to shop responsibly and without hoarding. When a mom of 16 was judged harshly for her grocery cart, though, she took to Facebook to remind people—you don’t always know a person’s story when you take a look at the contents of their grocery trips.

Mom Jeni Bonell lives in Toowoomba, Australia, where she’s raised a big beautiful family of 16 children. She regularly documents the trials (and triumphs) of having such a massive collection of mouths to feed and minds to nurture—but when grocery stores started to run out of daily necessities due to quarantine rules and panic purchasing, Bonell found herself facing an entirely new set of problems.

She wrote on Facebook that she had been out for a grocery run for her family when a woman behind her in line made a snide comment about the amount of toilet paper she was purchasing. Her post read:

“No lady, you don’t get to stand behind me in the checkout line in the grocery store, with your voice dripping sarcasm and your crinkled brow, as you loud-enough-for-me-to-hear-you say, ‘Welllll, there goes ALLLLLLL the toilet paper now ….. hmmmmpffff.’”

She went on to explain that with a bigger family, she undoubtedly needs to buy more of certain items—toilet paper being one of those. And she wasn’t hoarding enough to keep her family stockpiled for a year, as some had been doing, but was simply trying to make sure there was enough that a family of 18 wouldn’t run out before the next time they ran out to the store.

“I will not apologise for buying toilet paper for my family which is undoubtedly bigger than yours ? And I will not let you make me feel guilty about it one little bit. Perhaps taking a deep breath would help, or try smiling,” she continued.

In an interview with News.com Australia, she explained that she didn’t want to leave others without the ability to buy what they needed—but that she also didn’t want to be shamed for picking up what she would need for a family that went through more supplies each week than your average household.

“I’m really saddened that so many people can’t just buy their basic needs,” she said. “And it’s wrong that people should be judged when they do go to the grocery store.

“I’m just encouraging everyone not to panic, instead just be kind to each other and let’s share the supplies around. Let’s fight the virus, not each other.”

In the weeks since she first went viral for being shamed, Bonell has gone on to explain that there have been other struggles to overcome—including new limits on how much families can purchase at a time when at the grocery store picking up produce, dairy, and household items.

But she’s remained positive through it all. And her original post caught the attention of both the news and other large families, who were able to commiserate with her and share their own struggles with being judged as “panic buyers.”

Her advice to everyone over the matter, though, is simple.

“Let’s just stop it folks and remember that we all live on this planet together. Let’s be friends instead,” she said.