Seth Owen is doing well for himself.
The Hill reports that the gay Florida teen who was kicked out of his home by his parents is now working with a US lawmaker.
While attending Georgetown University, Seth Owen is interning with Florida's 7th congressional district Representative Stephanie Murphy (D). It was Murphy’s office that reached out to Owen to offer him support and an internship.
“I am proud that Seth chose to be a part of our team,” Murphy said in a statement to The Hill. “He will always be welcomed here, and I’m am happy to see him thrive. Our entire office is rooting for his continued success.”
Owen stared working with the congresswoman’s team in January, and he'll continue working with them for the remainder of his spring semester.
But that’s not all, Owen also created a scholarship called the Unbroken Horizons Scholarship Foundation to help “students in marginalized communities access post-secondary education.” As he told the Orlando Sentinel, he started the scholarship with the $25,000 donation he received from Ellen DeGeneres last year.
All of this is acting as great experience for Seth Owen’s dream of working as a lawyer for LGBTQ rights.
Last summer, the world heard the story of Seth Owen. While he was attending First Coast High School in Jacksonville, Florida, Owen’s parents discovered that he was gay. They then forced him to attend “conversion therapy” counseling.
“They made it clear the intention was to make me straight,” Owen told News4Jax.
Eventually, Owen told his parents he didn’t want to go to the counseling. His parents then gave him an ultimatum. Take the counseling or leave their house. Owen decided to leave.
“I was really, really upset,” Owen shares. “It was extremely hurtful to know that I was walking out that door not knowing what lay ahead and feeling I don’t know how to explain it, it was devastating, absolutely devastating.”
For the rest of his high school career, Owen lived on the couches of his friends. His studies didn’t falter, however, as Seth Owen ended up being the Valedictorian of his class with a GPA of 4.16.
Unfortunately, that’s where his next troubles began. Since losing his parents’ financial support, Seth Owen had to find a way to pay for his upcoming college tuition. Owen had been accepted to Georgetown University and received a $50,000 scholarship, but there was still a remaining $27,000 to pay for his first year at the school.
Thankfully, one of Owen’s teachers created a GoFundMe page to raise money for his education. That’s when his story went viral.
Ultimately, that crowd funding page greatly over performed. The page sped past its $20,000 goal and made $141,619 for Seth Owen’s education.
Now with his work for Representative Stephanie Murphy, Seth Owen is on the path toward great things.
h/t: The Hill, Orlando Sentinel
