Paying college tuition in the US kind of makes UK university fees seem almost seem reasonable, with immense pressure put on ordinary American kids who dream of attaining higher education.
For one lucky little girl from Missouri, some of that stress has been alleviated; thanks to a series of fortuitous – and highly specific – circumstances surrounding her birth.
Baby J’Aime Brown was born on July 11 (known as 7-Eleven Day in America), at precisely 7:11 pm and to make matters even stranger, she weighed in at 7 pounds 11 ounces. A genuinely astonishing set of coincidences which has left her with a very tidy start to her college fund.
J’Aime’s parents Rachel Langford and Johntez Brown were of course delighted after receiving a lovely gift basket from 7-Eleven to mark their daughter’s birth; packed with diapers, cute onesies and other thoughtful gifts.
However, the proud parents were left absolutely astounded when a representative from the convenience store chain asked if they would be interested in a $7,111 pledge towards their newborn’s college fund. Their answer, of course, was a big yes.
Speaking with CNN, mum Rachel revealed she was left ‘completely shocked’ by this unexpected act of generosity, stating:
I kind of just freaked out.
Rachel, who also has a six-year-old son, has spoken out about how difficult it can be for parents to juggle bills with caring for their kids:
It’s hard for anybody to even get a trust fund for their children.
To get a blessing like that, it just helps a lot.
A 7-Eleven representative made the following comment to USA Today:
After catching wind of the incredible news, 7-Eleven decided to pledge $7,111 to the newborn’s college fund to honor her entry to the world.
Along with this pledge, the brand has also provided the family with diapers, 7-Eleven onesies and other newborn goodies to help her parents along the way.
In yet another unusual aspect to this story, Rachel appears to have predicted J’Aime’s well-timed entrance to the world in advance.
Speaking with CNN, Rachel revealed she had repeatedly seen the numbers seven and 11 throughout the course of her pregnancy:
I thought it was weird at first, and I didn’t know that [the numbers] meant so much.
A lot of the times [during the pregnancy] I would look at the clock and it was 7:11.
Congratulations to Rachel and Johntez. However, I must say this really is a missed opportunity to call this child Eleven…
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Jules studied English Literature with Creative Writing at Lancaster University before earning her masters in International Relations at Leiden University in The Netherlands (Hoi!). She then trained as a journalist through News Associates in Manchester. Jules has previously worked as a mental health blogger, copywriter and freelancer for various publications.