Starbucks Employee Surprised With Free Car

ByLaura Taglialavore KTRK logo
Tuesday, June 12, 2018
Starbucks Employee Surprised With Free Car
Willowridge High School senior Sionna Brenn is surprised with a free car at the Starbucks where she works.

A Willowridge High School student got the shock of a lifetime, when a complete stranger gifted her a brand new car.

Sionna Brenn, 19, was taking out the trash at the Pearland Starbucks where she works, when she was surprised by a man carrying balloons. He handed her the keys to a brand new Toyota Corolla, telling her, "this car is yours."

That stranger was Charlie Jabaley, a former Grammy-winning manager for 2 Chainz who decided to change his life after he was diagnosed with a brain tumor. He lost 130 pounds and became an aspiring Ironman competitor, but then decided he wanted to help others reach their dreams, too. Jabaley is now biking from Los Angeles to New York on what he calls "The Dream Machine" tour, a cross-country mission to inspire those in need.

Sionna came to the U.S. from Ethiopia as a child. She was later declared homeless and has worked at Starbucks for the last year to support herself. Despite her hardships, she graduated Willowridge High school last week in the top 10% of her class and earned a scholarship to the University of Texas at San Antonio.