He left his high school graduation ceremony to go straight to work, and his determination inspired an online fundraiser that has already raised over $22,000.
A recent high school graduate in Georgia, USA, received his diploma and went straight to his job. Dressed in his gown, the Burger King employee did not miss his shift and caught the attention of a customer at the restaurant.
The 18-year-old had just graduated from Mills Creek High School and went to work still wearing his graduation attire, only putting on plastic gloves to bag orders at the restaurant.
His attitude moved Maria Mendoza, who recorded a video for TikTok showing Mykale Baker all dressed up and working on a night that should have been just a celebration for him for completing an important step in his education.
The clip went viral and received more than 3 million views, which inspired Mendoza to create a GoFundMe for the young man.
“While many graduates spent the night celebrating with friends and family, one young man quietly showed the world what determination is,” she wrote in the description of her campaign for Baker.
“Shortly after receiving his diploma — still proudly wearing his medals — he showed up for his shift at Burger King.”
The online fundraiser has raised more than $22,000, which will be donated to Baker so he can pursue his dream of going to college.
According to a report by the New York Times, Mendoza returned to Burger King to give Baker the thousands of dollars raised for his future. The emotional moment was also shared by her on TikTok.
In another post, the teenager used Mendoza’s social media account to thank nearly a thousand donors who participated in the online fundraiser.
“Thank you very much, I was thinking about taking a gap year because I didn’t have money for college, but thanks to all of you, maybe I’ll go straight to a technical college and get my mechanic’s diploma,” he told Mendoza’s followers.
With tears in his eyes, Baker spoke about his emotion and gratitude: “I never thought this would happen to me. I’m very grateful.”
This content was created with the help of AI and reviewed by the editorial team.
