Billionaire commencement speaker surprises graduates with $1,000 in cash
Students were able to say goodbye to their college years with one heck of a present.
Finally graduating from college can be an emotional time. The ceremony essentially represents the culmination of stupidly late nights, stressful work in the library and early morning lectures.
Most people hope to enjoy the ceremony with their friends and family and look forward to the next chapter of their life with some anxiousness and optimism.
One thing that students will likely be wary of when they go into the real world is just how much everything costs and the increase in prices for most goods.
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But one gesture by a speaker at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth will certainly help increase the mood amongst the 2024 graduating class and help relax their money fears.
Billionaire Robert Hale was the commencement speaker at the ceremony and spoke of the financial difficulties many people face and the need for generosity in the future.
Well, he seems to be practicing what he preaches because he gave more than 1,100 graduates $1,000 each.
While the gesture is amazing in its-self, it did come with one little catch.
Hale said $500 of the grand is for the graduate while the other is for them to give to others.
He invited each student to share in the joy of giving to someone who might need it more than you.
During his speech he said: "These trying times have heightened the need for sharing, caring and giving.
"Our community needs you and your generosity more than ever."
Amazingly, this isn’t the first time Hale, the CEO of Quincy-based Granite Telecommunications, has done a stunt like this.
The previous year the CEO, who has a net worth estimate of a bout $5.4 billion, gave the same amount to 2,523 graduates at UMass Boston.
In 2021 he also gave $1000 to 230 Quincy College graduates.
The college said the announcement during the speech sent the students into a frenzy and 'each graduate who crossed the stage' on Thursday 'would receive one $500 envelope to keep as a gift' while giving the other half away, as Hale wished.
The school also said Hale ‘urged them not to let failure define them, using his own life as an example of resilience and perseverance’.
With the cost of living still hitting many people who are fully employed, knowing they have at least $500 in their back pocket will likely have made the day for many of the graduates.
Gerrard Kaonga