A Hawaiian man has achieved a feat that many students may deem impossible. He has paid off over $50,000 in student loan debt in just 11 months by saying “yes” to an incredible array of odd jobs.
Kamaka Dias, 27, graduated from the University of Hawai'i at Mānoa, and made the decision to pay off his debt as quickly as possible after calculating what his expenses under a loan repayment plan would look like.
Dias then launched his mission at the beginning of 2020, calling it “The Race to $50K.”
However, it wasn’t all manual labor for the industrious graduate. He even officiated a close friend’s wedding, walked and bathed dogs, and even dressed up as Buzz Lightyear of “Toy Story” for a 3-year-old’s birthday party.
During this period of time, Dias lived with his parents to save money and used every opportunity to be frugal like not opting to eat an acai bowl that looked tempting until he finished his goal and could finally treat himself. Word of mouth of his mission earned Dias more and more job opportunities, and by the end of the year, he had logged over 300 different assignments.
To give back to his supportive community, Dias even donated his stimulus check toward gift packs for hundreds of high school seniors.
Dias made his final loan repayment in December 2020. In total, he paid off $53,757 in just 11 months, proving to graduates with loan debt everywhere that where there’s a will, there’s always a way.
Dias plans to write a book about his experience to further inspire others.
