by COOPERSVILLE, Mich. — For many high school seniors, the final weeks before graduation are filled with celebration, planning, and excitement. But for 18-year-old Diego Cancela, a Coopersville High School senior, everything changed in a flash—literally.
Just one week before graduation, Diego’s car burst into flames during a routine drive to work. Inside the vehicle were not only his work clothes and laptop, but also his graduation cap, gown, and honor cords—essentials he’d been eagerly waiting to wear on his big day.
“I had just finished my last AP exam and was heading to one of my two jobs,” said Diego, who has been working hard to save money for college. “I saw smoke on the highway and thought, ‘That can’t be my car.’ But then it started smoking from under the hood. I pulled over, saw the flames, called 911—and before I knew it, the whole thing was engulfed.”
The fire left his car completely destroyed, along with everything inside. Despite the shock and loss, Diego is remarkably focused on what truly matters.
“I’m just thankful I made it out. It could have ended so differently,” he said.
His mother, Simone Otis, was 170 miles away on a field trip with Diego’s younger brother when she received the call.
“At first everything seemed fine, and then suddenly the car’s on fire,” she said. “I felt helpless. But all I could think was—thank God he’s okay. Everything else can be replaced. The world would be lost without him.”
Thanks to community support, Diego will still walk across the graduation stage in a brand-new cap and gown next week. In the meantime, his family has set up a FreeFunder page to help replace his car and cover other essentials as he prepares for college.
His story has resonated far beyond Michigan—including with families in Wyoming—reminding many that while the path to graduation can be unpredictable, the resilience of students like Diego proves that not even fire can stop a dream.
