Daivon Reeder recalls his stepdad telling him to skip college orientation in fall 2013 as "pointless" because he "wasn't going to graduate."
The Detroiter graduated Saturday from Eastern Michigan University, the first in his family with a degree. He focused on criminal justice and military science after completing Douglass College Preparatory Academy, a public school on Detroit's west side .
He tweets Thursday afternoon:
My stepdad told me it was pointless to go to orientation, I wasn't going to graduate.....4 years later he in jail & I'm well.
Daivon Reeder: "Just trying to be me." (Twitter photo)
The tweet is shared more than 144,000 times in two days and has nearly 600,000 "likes." More than 1,600 supportive comments are posted.
That's extraordinary for a Twitter user with about 3,100 followers -- including 600 earned in the past day. His brief bio at the platform is humble: "Just trying to be me."
"I just thought the situation of mine was ironic," the senior tells BuzzFeed, adding:
"I really do appreciate all the support. It makes these last few years worth everything.
"I'm just a first-generation college kid from Detroit trying to beat the odds. I guess people can relate to a humble beginning."
In addition to BuzzFeed, coverage appears at MLive, Yahoo News, on a Fox affiliate in Washington, D.C., and elsewhere. A Detroit broadcaster tweets Friday afternoon:
There you go! Looking forward to interviewing @_justcallmekidd https://t.co/PnLi83iv29
— Taryn Asher Fox 2 (@TarynAsherFox2) April 21, 2017
