GoFundMe Launched For Black Student Who Collected Garbage Now Going To Harvard Law School
One man’s trash is another man’s treasure, the saying goes.
Rehan Staton, a Black college student from Maryland has proudly been admitted into one of the most prestigious law schools in the nation and credits collecting garbage to make ends meet.
"It was the people that were on the bottom of the hierarchy who really lifted me up," Staton told CBS News about his path to getting into Harvard Law School. "It helps me keep my eyes on the prize. If this were just about me and just fighting for myself, I definitely would have quit."
The 24-year-old said that while he was attending classes at the University of Maryland, he would wake up early in the morning to help collect trash for Bates Trucking & Trash Removal.
Being raised by a single parent, his father, after his mother moved back to Sri Lanka, Stanton recalled his childhood being very lonely.
"Things just kept falling on us," Staton told the Boston Globe. "My dad lost his job at one point and had to start working three jobs in order to provide for us. It got to the point where I barely got to see my father.”
While excelling in high school and training to become a professional boxer, Stanton first attended Bowie State University before transferring to the University of Maryland and setting his dreams on going to law school.
After his father experienced a stroke, Staton rejoined Bates Trucking & Trash Removal to support his studies and his family. Despite the childhood obstacles he faced, Staton graduated from the University of Maryland in 2018 and started an analyst job at a consulting firm in Washington D.C.
After applying to a list of law schools in the country, he was accepted into Columbia University, the University of Southern California, Pepperdine University, and the University of Pennsylvania, Staton ultimately chose to further his education at Harvard Law School.
"When I look back at my experiences, I like to think that I made the best of the worst situation," Staton told CNN. "Each tragedy I faced forced me out of my comfort zone, but I was fortunate enough to have a support system to help me thrive in those predicaments."
A GoFundMe has also been created to help raise money for his tuition and has already received more than $70,000 as of Thursday morning (July 9).
