Teen who spent 12 years homeless graduates as valedictorian “because I have everything to lose”
High school may have been some of the best days of our lives, but we can all agree that it wasn’t always easy.
Imagine being homeless coping with all the typical teenage tribulations and still maintaining a GPA high enough to become valedictorian. That’s exactly what an 18-year-old attending Florida Coast High School in Jacksonville did in 2014.
Griffin’s father struggled financially after mom passed away from cancer. The costs for the family home were too high to carry alone, and they’ve spiraled into poverty since.
The young man specifically remembers one particular night when he was still at the family home, in bed.
There was nothing to eat and he was starving, but he always kept his head up at school.
He managed to hide his problems under a mask so well, that none of the teachers had a clue what he was actually going through.
This young man had every odd against him, yet he not only graduated, but he also did it at the top of his class.
Griffin was so determined to make the most out of his life, and he knew that a good education would be the first and essential step in doing so.
Being named the valedictorian was just the cherry on top, and it’s an absolutely amazing achievement in any circumstance.
His story didn’t go unnoticed and news stations wanted to interview him, and it quickly becomes obvious just how humble and mature the high-schooler is.
“I just want to show that anyone can do it, no matter what you’ve been through. I never want to live that life again. I do everything I do because I don’t want to live like that,” he said to ABC News.
Griffin wants to get a degree in engineering at Florida State, just like his older brother did. He already managed to get a housing scholarship but is hoping to get an academic scholarship for tuition as well.
If there is one thing that Griffin wants the rest of the world to know, it’s that you should never give up.
Griffin hoped his story would inspire other kids who are dealing with adversity. What’s more, his classmates wanted him to know that he was already an inspiration to them. So, when Griffin came up short on his tuition to Florida State University, his friends started a GoFundMe campaign. In total, they raised nearly $40,000 to help him pay his tuition, and the university also said they’d help cover costs.
He even found a home with his girlfriend’s family, who gave him a room as he was graduating. Jennifer McCall, the mom of his girlfriend, explained, “He’s not defined by what happened to him.” After telling the school about his situation, Griffin revealed he could breathe a little sigh of relief, telling Today:
“It’s definitely taken a little weight off my shoulders. I don’t just walk up to people and say, ‘Hey, I’m homeless.’ It’s a hard thing to do. Only a few of my best friends know everything that has ever happened.”
And despite the hardships and rising above them, the situation did bring Griffin and his brother Sean even closer together. Sean, who was set to graduate from Florida State University at the time that Griffin was graduating as valedictorian, described to Today how it brought the brothers closer:
“When I was going through that, I couldn’t tell my friends what I was going through … I couldn’t invite them to my house, so it was mainly just me and Griffin, and we did everything together, baseball especially. He’s just a really tough individual. He’s younger than me, but I still look up to him.”
Griffin is an incredible young man and his story is an inspiration to many.
Source:
apost.com,
