TORONTO – A Brooklyn-area student, whose story inspired a million-dollar Indiegogo campaign for his school, landed the invitation of a lifetime this week – from none other than President Barack Obama.
The Mott Hall Bridges Academy student – known to the Internet as Vidal –and his principal, Ms. Lopez, visited the Oval Office this week, just a week after donations to the campaign reached over $1 million.
“Ms. Lopez taught me that before a student is ready for academic training, they must be made to understand that they deserve success. And that can be the hardest battle in education,” read an Instagram post showing Vidal and Lopez posing with the president at his desk.
“Ms. Lopez always said that there was no place her students did not belong. Recently we received an invitation that proved just that.”
The campaign, created by “Humans of New York” blogger Brandon Stanton in January, originally aimed to pay for yearly trips to Harvard for sixth grade students at Mott Hall Bridges Academy.
READ MORE: ‘Humans of New York’ blog raises over $350K to send inner-city kids to Harvard
Contributors have now raised enough money for the school to start a scholarship fund, start summer programs and fund years-worth of trips to Harvard.
http://instagram.com/petesouza/?modal=true
The fundraiser was started after Stanton interviewed Vidal for his blog.
When asked who has influenced his life the most he responded, “My principal, Ms. Lopez.”
Since the campaign went viral, the Humans of New York has been dedicated to covering members of the Brownsville, Brooklyn community – long considered one of the most dangerous neighbourhoods in New York City.
Earlier this week Vidal, Lopez and Stanton also appeared on The Ellen DeGeneres Show.
The Indiegogo campaign has raised over US$1.2 million for Mott Hall Bridges Academy. More than 40,500 people have donated to the cause.
“Anyone who sends such positive messages into a dark place should be rewarded and thanked profusely. THANK YOU for making a difference in these children’s lives,” wrote an anonymous donor on Indiegogo.
The campaign runs until Feb.10.
- Canadian man dies during Texas Ironman event. His widow wants answers as to why
- ‘Shock and disbelief’ after Manitoba school trustee’s Indigenous comments
- Several baby products have been recalled by Health Canada. Here’s the list
- ‘Sciatica was gone’: hospital performs robot-assisted spinal surgery in Canadian first
Comments