An Uber driver is celebrating a milestone in her education thanks to one of her passengers. Georgia State University student Latonya Young has always had dreams and aspirations of becoming a lawyer. During the day, she works as a hairstylist and in the evenings she makes extra money as an Uber driver. The two jobs keep her busy enough, but Latonya is also a devoted mother and student.
When Latonya picked up Kevin Esch from Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium, she had no idea it would be a life-changing ride. The pair casually chatted during the drive and Latonya revealed that when she was just 16-years-old, she got pregnant and dropped out of high school. She later resumed her studies at Georgia State but had to drop out of college, as well, because she couldn’t afford the $700 balance on her account. The university put a hold on her account making it impossible for Latonya to continue her education and register for classes.
“Every time I got ready to pay the money, my kids needed something,” Latonya reportedly told WSB. “I said, ‘OK, I’ll just wait.'” Days after giving Kevin a ride, Latonya was notified that she could register. She’s now earned her associate’s degree in criminal justice and is preparing to register for her classes to obtain a bachelor’s degree. Latonya and Kevin kept in touch while she was back in school, and he said she made sure to maintain As and Bs in order to show him that she was serious and how much she appreciated his kindness.
“There was something about Latonya that just — she resonates with me and we developed an incredible friendship now and I am incredibly proud of what she’s done,” Kevin told CNN. “I could’ve bought new clothes or I could’ve helped someone out. And what has come back to me has come back a hundredfold and I would do it 1,000 times over.”
Denver’s No-Longer-Legendary Beta Nightclub Is Rebranding… AGAIN
The last time we talked about Denver’s Beta Nightclub back in December, it was in the process of transitioning to more of a hip hop and sports bar than the EDM juggernaut it once was. DJ Diesel, aka Shaq, rang in New Year’s at the venue, so it seems EDM isn’t being entirely ousted from the club’s mission, but that might change in 2020.
Beta’s profile picture on Instagram now reads, “Change is good, coming soon!”, signaling perhaps some sort of official rebrand. Other sources suggest the club might even be changing its name — it’s not like Beta 2.0 was the brightest idea in the first place, after all. It has been heavily criticized since its relaunch this year.
Currently, there’s only one event on the club’s schedule, a UFC watch party on January 18. But even that is only on the Facebook event calendar, and not on the venue’s website. As of right now, the club is closed, though, and will remain that way (with the exception of the event on the 18th), for an indeterminate amount of time.
Stay tuned for more information as it becomes available.