无家可归女生考上哈佛 靠当清洁工完成学业

You don't run across a story this inspiring every day.

下面这个励志故事可不是每天都能遇到。

Dawn Loggins, a North Carolina high school senior who was left homeless by her parents the summer before her senior year, is graduating tonight from Burns High School in Lawndale, NC.

高三前那个暑假，北卡罗来纳州的高中生唐恩·洛金斯被父母遗弃，变得无家可归。而今她即将从朗代尔的伯恩斯高中毕业了。

While that's quite the accomplishment, what comes next is truly amazing: Dawn is going to Harvard University in the fall.

能顺利完成高中学业已经非常了不起，更喜人的是：今年秋天，唐恩就要在哈佛大学开始她的大学生活了。

Dawn grew up in a less-than-ideal situation, to say the least. Her house had no electricity or running water, so she was forced to do her homework in the dark and go days, even weeks, without showering. She lived with parents who abused drugs.

可以说，唐恩的家庭环境很不尽人意。她的父母都吸毒。家里没电没水，她只能在昏暗光线下做功课；有时，她会连续几天甚或几周洗不上澡。

"We would get water jugs and fill them up at the park, using the spigots in the bathroom. And we would use that to flush the toilet or cook with. Stuff like that," she told CNN.

“我们经常去公园洗手间灌水回家，然后用来做饭或冲马桶。”她对CNN记者说道。

At Burns, Dawn was nominated and accepted to Governor's School, a one-month summer program in North Carolina for gifted high school juniors.

在伯恩斯高中时，唐恩被推选参加了州长学校，这是北卡罗来纳州为优秀高中生设立的一月夏令营活动。

Dawn left for the program in June. She returned to Lawndale in July to find her house empty, with an eviction notice on the front door.Dawn was officially homeless.

夏令营六月结束。七月唐恩回到朗代尔，却意外发现家里已经人去楼空，大门封上了驱逐条。唐恩真的无家可归了。

After learning she was homeless, employees at Burns helped her in any way they could. Sheryl Kolton, a custodian and bus driver at Burns, even let Dawn live at her house.

得知这一情况后，伯恩斯的老师尽可能伸出了援手。谢莉尔·考尔顿是伯恩斯的管理员兼校车司机，主动让唐恩住到了她家里。

Dawn didn't let her situation stop her drive to be successful. As a senior, she participated in typical high-school extracurricular activities at Burns: band club, photography club, cross-country and National Honor Society. She also started a program collecting letters for active military troops and worked as a janitor at Burns to earn extra money — all while making straight A's.

尽管处境窘迫，唐恩并未轻言放弃。在伯恩斯高中，她参加了多项课外活动：乐队俱乐部、摄影俱乐部、越野社团以及国家荣誉生社团。而且，她还自办社团，为现役军人收发信件。此外，她还在学校做些杂活儿赚取费用。最骄傲的是，她每门功课都很出色。

And like any other bright high school senior, she decided to go to college.

同其他优秀高中生一样，唐恩也打算报考大学。

"When I was younger, I was able to look at all the bad choices — at the neglect, and the drug abuse, and everything that was happening — and make a decision for myself that I was not going to end up like my parents, living from paycheck to paycheck," Dawn told CNN.

“很小的时候，我就注意到了生活丑陋的一面——注意到那些被遗忘的人群、吸毒的人，以及各种困顿。然后，我告诉自己——绝不能成为父母那样潦倒无为的人。”唐恩告诉CNN记者。

Dawn applied at four North Carolina schools and her dream school, Harvard. Earlier this year, she got an acceptance letter from the Ivy League school. On top of being accepted, Dawn received a full scholarship to attend.

唐恩共申请了4所北卡罗来纳州的大学，还有她梦寐以求的哈佛大学。前不久，她如愿收到了这所常春藤名校的录取通知书。更喜人的是，她还获得了全额奖学金。

CNN wrote that since Dawn's story has circulated worldwide, people have sent encouragement and money to the teen. Dawn doesn't want the money for herself, though.

CNN报道说，现在唐恩的故事已家喻户晓，很多人纷纷祝福唐恩，甚至还寄了钱。其实，唐恩并不需要人们捐钱给自己。

"When I get to college, I can work for what I need. And I know my future is going to be great," she told CNN. Dawn hopes to start an organization to help other students with similar barriers in continuing their education.

她说：“上大学后，我可以靠勤工俭学赚取费用。我相信未来会更顺利吧。”唐恩打算创立一个组织，帮助其他有同样求学困境的学生。