I'm Renee. My son, David, has been accepted to UC Berkeley as a transfer student. He has saved and earned enough to cover almost his first year. His summer job fell through, and he is finding that he will be short a few thousand dollars. I want to help him, but I have only so much savings, and he is not willing to take it all even though I have offered to help. He will accept the kindness of others who are proud to see him succeed.

David didn't graduate high school. He took a proficiency exam to leave school early. He later was told that a GED would be needed, so he enrolled in a program and excelled. He had a slow and late start to his college education. With his father passing away unexpectedly during his first full semester at the junior college, and then shortly after, his grandfather, this was a setback. But he recommitted to higher education at any cost. He found his calling in math and followed it. He became friends with professors, a tutor to his peers, and joined clubs to help him with his goals. He had wanted to attend Berkeley since his first campus tour. He applied to and was accepted to some of the top universities as well as Berkeley.