Andrew Cisneros became a Clarkie

Andrew Cisneros was about to become a Clarkie.

But then there were problems. He flew all the way from Palmdale, CA. Due to a flight delay, he missed the Clarke-bound bus by just 3 minutes. Desperate to get to Clarke, he scheduled a Lyft driver.

More problems. Lyft driver Curtis Coleman was reluctant to make the 3+ hour drive from Chicago to Dubuque. After Andrew offered to buy Curtis food for his trouble, Curtis responded, “Let’s ride.”

Andrew and Curtis became fast friends. They spent the car ride chatting about college, passions, and life. Upon arriving in Dubuque, Curtis decided to join Andrew on his visit rather than return to Chicago. They both spent the day getting to know Clarke’s campus and the baseball coaches. At the end of the day, Curtis offered Andrew a ride back to Chicago – free of charge. The two of them spent the car ride home talking about the visit and Clarke. By the end of the drive it was decided: Andrew would attend Clarke.

Fast forward to move-in day. A couple days prior, Andrew sent Curtis a text to see if he would be willing to make the drive again, this time to move Andrew into his new home. Again, Curtis responded, “Let’s ride.”

This story truly embodies Clarke University’s values of friendship and serving others. Thank you to Andrew and Curtis for showing how an act of kindness can make a lifelong impact.