Food distribution for students by the Cop1 association in Lyon, 2025. COP1
"Yes, it's hard not having any presents to open, no tree, no Christmas lights. But you grow up and get used to it." For the fifth year in a row, Léa (who did not wish to give her last name), 28, is spending Christmas alone. At 13 Rue Santeuil, in the 5th arrondissement of Paris on one of the Paris-I Panthéon-Sorbonne campuses, this young woman from Bordeaux is pursuing a master's degree in history. In the basement of that same building, on a December evening, she waited in line for a food distribution run by Cop1, a non-profit group that supports struggling students.
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'I never eat alone anymore': La Cop1ne, a Parisian community canteen offering a cure for loneliness
Léa is the daughter of two military personnel and holds four jobs alongside her studies: waitress, babysitter, meal deliverer for elderly people and pet-sitter. This situation almost always forces her to work on December 24 or 25. "Even if I wasn't working, the train tickets to go back to Bordeaux are just too expensive," she said. Her parents' income is too high for Léa to qualify for a student grant based on social criteria, but her father has never provided any financial assistance. Her mother, meanwhile, is unable to support both Léa and her younger sister, who is studying at a private school in Lyon.
