Drew Alum's Donation Comes in Nick of Time

Even after all Judea Hill's interviews with Eyewitness News, Fox New York, the Wall Street Journal and other media outlets about so she could return for her senior year, and , there was still the matter of actually receiving the money and getting it to Drew in time so she didn't have to move off campus.

Until the money arrived, there was still a certain amount of stress, uncertainty and urgency.

The money arrived Wednesday and the $2,800 bill was taken care of the same day. Training for her job as a housing assistant starts Friday, which she wouldn't have been able to attend if the balance was not paid, Hill said.

Then, the freshmen class—including the 12 students she is in charge of mentoring—move in next week for orientation.

Now that the bill is paid, Hill, a 21-year-old art major from Brooklyn who aims to be an art therapist, is "very happy," she said in an interview Thursday. Hill is preparing for the training sessions, freshmen orientation and her classes, and the realization that just about every single person on campus has seen the video where she asks for help. In the video, she says she and her family were in a difficult financial situation after the deaths of two close family members.

Part of her is proud she reached out for help, which she said she did at her mother's urging. Part of her is embarrassed. Part of her still seems surprised the video and story spread as much and as quickly as it did. And part of her knows attention will move on to something else.

But right now, the YouTube video is what the flutist, rugby player and student leader is known for. An employee on campus on Thursday called her "Miss Celebrity" and said, "You're blessed." Hill agreed. She said she was in Madison recently and a stranger gave her a hug and said, "You're amazing."

Hill read every comment that was posted on her YouTube videos and on the news stories about them, where some people, many of them posting anonymously, expressed negative views about Hill and what she was doing.

She read them all, she said. And while she didn't respond in the comments to the negativity, she addressed it in a video, saying it did not bring her down.

"No one ever got anywhere in life without a little help from someone else," she said in the video. "And if I would have let my pride and embarrassment get in the way, I would not be a senior at a Drew and I would not have had so many people reach out to help me."

In addition to the anonymous donor, who reached out to her through Facebook, Hill received about 40 other donations, ranging from $5 to $150, from people who saw her appeal, mostly from people she did not know personally, but who knew of her or heard about her from someone who did know her.

Hill said she is thankful for everyone who offered support.

Hill lived on the Madison campus over the summer, where she worked full time in the telecommunications office, troubleshooting and filing tickets for people who need help with their phones or Internet connection, and serving as the campus' main operator. During the school year, you might see her around town. She plans to work two part-time jobs on campus, plus part-time on the weekends at the Rocking Horse children's clothing store on Main Street.