Man Who Became Valedictorian of High School Slept Under DC Bridge
The valedictorian of a high school in Washington, D.C. had been living out of a tent under a bridge in the Navy Yard neighborhood. Michael Jeffery, a recent graduate and the valedictorian from the Goodwill Excel Center…
The valedictorian of a high school in Washington, D.C. had been living out of a tent under a bridge in the Navy Yard neighborhood.
Michael Jeffery, a recent graduate and the valedictorian from the Goodwill Excel Center, a “tuition-free adult charter high school” had been sleeping in a tent for two years after losing his house and jobs during the COVID-19 pandemic, he told NBC4 Washington during an interview on Monday night.
“A lot of people don’t get that second chance, and Goodwill allowed that second chance for me, and I appreciate that,” Jeffery told the outlet.
When the pandemic began, Jeffery lost his job working at a clothing company and Waffle House, in addition to losing his home, he told the outlet.
“I didn’t want to be stuck out here,” Jeffery said in the video. “I don’t wish this on anybody to be stuck out here.”
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In early May, the District’s Department of Human Services (DHS) released a press release citing data that showed an increase in