Custodian moved to tears when students buy him a Jeep Wrangler for his birthday: Watch
A custodian at a northern Virginia high school was stunned last month when students raised money to get him a shiny new Jeep to drive.
Francis Apraku is a custodian at James Madison High School in Vienna, Virginia, about 11 miles west of Arlington. When students found out he longed to own a Jeep Wrangler, they created a GoFundMe and raised over $21,000.
They gave Apraku his shiny, red Jeep Wrangler this month and captured the touching moment on film.
"Francis, that's for you, buddy," said one student in the video.
The custodian then dropped to the ground and rolled off to the side, covering his face and crying as students surrounded him.
"I can't believe this," he later said in the video before hugging the students.
Freshman Bennett Hibshman, 15, led the initiative with six friends, adding on their GoFundMe page that Apraku moved to the United States a few years ago.
“Ever since we met Francis he has been super kind and friendly and sometimes even says prayers for us,” Hibshman wrote under on the fundraiser page.
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Custodian told students he wanted Jeep Wrangler for his birthday
According to the students, they’d previously asked Apraku what he wanted for his birthday. He said he’d always wanted a Jeep Wrangler but couldn’t afford one.
The freshmen students then made the GoFundMe in hopes of getting him a Jeep Wrangler by the time they graduated. That day came much sooner than they thought and within 48 hours, they’d raised $5,000.
“We didn't face many challenges in the fundraising effort,” Hibshman, one of the students, wrote in an email to USA TODAY. “We were lucky enough to have it explode all over the town of Vienna.”
He added that local businesses like the Vienna Inn, Terra's Ice Cream, Coffee, & Sweets and Rodi Salon helped raise the money. The students’ parents helped too, he said.
When asked how the experience has changed his perspective on communities and how they can impact locals, Hibshman said he was shocked by how much people will do for strangers.
“A community can come together and raise that much for a man they have never met,” he told USA TODAY via email.
He said Apraku’s reaction to his new Jeep Wrangler was more than they expected.
“His reaction was contagious and made all of us happy for him,” he wrote.
Saleen Martin is a reporter on USA TODAY's NOW team. She is from Norfolk, Virginia – the 757. Follow her on Twitter at @SaleenMartin or email her at [email protected].
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Students buy custodian Jeep Wrangler for his birthday: Watch
