An Uber driver’s dream of getting a college degree came true thanks to one of her passengers.
Latonya Young, a 43-year-old single mother worked as a hair stylist during the day and an Uber driver by night.
One night, she picked up a passenger outside Mercedes-Benz Stadium where she began telling him her life story.
At the age of 16, Young had to drop out of high school to raised her first child. She recently was enrolled at Georgia State University but had to drop out due to an unpaid balance of $700.
“Every time I got ready to pay the money, my kids needed something. I said, ‘OK, I’ll just wait,” Young told Channel 2’s Berndt Petersen.
A couple days after that ride, she got a call from her former university.
“And the message stated, ‘You can register for classes now.’ I was literally blown away. A stranger has never done that or done anything like that for me,” Young said.
The stranger was her former Uber passenger, Kevin Esch. He even attended her graduation.
“When he paid the balance, I had to do this for him,” Young shared. “I maintained my grades. As and Bs. Just trying to do everything to make sure he knows I appreciate him.”
She received an associate’s degree in criminal justice and is currently pursuing her bachelor’s degree where she plans to one day become a lawyer.
“This one changed my life. That one ride,” Young said.