Would your church help if you said your baby had no formula? That question is at the center of a viral experiment that is raising concerns about how churches respond to urgent needs.
Nikalie Monroe began calling churches and religious centers pretending to be a mother who ran out of baby formula. She asked each place if they could help her, and the videos quickly went viral, igniting a nationwide debate.
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“Then I started adding the baby,” Monroe told SAN, referencing the audio recording of a crying baby she played in the background. The change made the scenario feel more urgent.
Across dozens of calls, Monroe said she received nine yeses. Some churches without food pantries still offered to find formula or meet her nearby.
However, she documented 33 nos. Several churches offered resource numbers, but others gave no help at all.
“[I was even] hung up on twice… I couldn’t believe it,” Monroe said.
One church blamed national politics and referenced the “Jobama Obiden regime,” which drew more attention online and a wave of negative reviews left online.
What started this viral baby formula experiment?
Monroe told SAN the idea came from her job as a drug addiction counselor. She often works with homeless patients and refers them to churches referred to her job, but many return without receiving help.
That pattern made her wonder what would happen if someone called in a crisis. Her experiment, she said, shows broader gaps that extend beyond religion. “It’s not even just on the church. It’s on everybody,” she said.
She said communities must ensure pantries have baby formula and other essentials. Even though her baby is fictional, Monroe said the need is real.
“If somebody would have called with a real baby, that baby would be starving,” she said.
Churches push back as scrutiny grows
One of the most discussed calls involved Dream City Church in Phoenix, a church Charlie Kirk was briefly a member of but left before his passing. The church told Monroe “no,” but viewers noted the church had recently posted, “It’s the job of the church (NOT the government) to take care of poor people.” The church bio also highlights outreach for the hungry homeless and helpless.
Dream City Church operates Mom’s Pantry to help those in need of food in Arizona. According to their website, their Phoenix Dream Center also serves more than 40,000 at-risk youth, homeless and needy each month. The center includes a residential rehabilitation program and shelter. Dream City Church has several other community outreach programs.
Other churches who also said “no” have begun to speak out following the virality of posts. Living Faith Christian Center’s Bishop Raymond Johnson called her “low and evil” during a sermon and described her actions as “the spirit of a witch.” While Johnson mentioned other charitable acts he and his church do, the sermon was ultimately removed from YouTube following even more backlash.
SAN contacted the church twice but received no response upon the first call. After a second try, a member of the church told SAN Living Faith Christian Center is hosting a holiday drive-thru food distribution Nov. 14. They also recently held a Youth Day for community members.
SAN contacted the church but received no response. Several other numbers Monroe called have now either been disconnected or are not in service — likely due to the hate calls from others.
“I know I can’t control people’s responses, but I don’t feel like spreading more hate is the answer,” she told SAN.
What backlash has this experiment created?
Some critics accused Monroe of trying to steal money. She denied this and said she only asked for a single can of formula for the experiment. “I was making it so easy,” she said. Once the church responded “yes” or “no,” she often recorded herself explaining the experiment to them, so nothing was ever received.
Others accused her of being an influencer doing this for views. Her following grew from about 300 to more than 400,000 in a little over one week. She said she is not an influencer and posted the videos for fun.
Her experiment also drew attention from members of the Latter Day Saints community. Some commenters on online forums claimed LDS churches only help their own members. Monroe attempted to call those specific churches but they were out-of-service.
Churches ‘not obligated’ to give
Another pastor who was not contacted in the experiment said churches are not obligated to give. The video brought major backlash, leading him to make his account private.
While most churches operate under 501(c)3 status, that doesn’t mean all have the same resources. Fewer than half of the churches Monroe reached out to had a food pantry, and many don’t have benevolence funds or staff to handle emergency requests. That gap is part of what Monroe’s experiment has highlighted.
“Out of all of it, there’s a gap that needs to be fixed,” Monroe said. “Not even just on the church, it’s on everybody — even the community. I feel like we don’t even do our job to make sure that these pantries have baby formula or the needs that other people need.”
The same pastor highlighted how scams targeting churches are common. Monroe said she understands the fear but believes it should not guide every decision.
“I was just talking to another church that said ‘yes,’” Monroe told SAN. “Even when we’re in relationships and we have a bad experience, we don’t go into the next one with that baggage. I feel like that should apply with people that are in need.”
Monroe will no longer conduct this specific experiment, but told SAN she has another social experiment she’d like to try — one that doesn’t involve churches.
