A high school senior in Florida who was homeless as recently as April will graduate as the valedictorian of his class next month.
According to First Coast News, Griffin Furlong has spent the last 12 years in and out of homeless shelters and relatives’ houses after his mother passed away from leukemia when he was just six years old.
But through it all, Furlong said he kept a positive mindset, so much so that he was able to accumulate a 4.65 GPA, which is the best mark in his class. He also said he’ll address his family’s plight in his valedictorian address at the Jacksonville Memorial Arena in a few weeks.
Furlong plans to study civil engineering at Florida State in the fall, but he is once again hitting financial road blocks. While he has received several grants and a housing discount, he is still thousands of dollars away from his goal of a full ride.
Teachers and counselors have written letters of recommendation and are hopeful that Furlong will be on the receiving end of several academic scholarships later this summer.
In a related story, this is probably our first story about “Florida Man” that doesn’t end with an arrest and drug-related charges: Florida Man Arrested After Bragging About Selling Drugs on Facebook
