When a woman realized her Uber driver was an Olympic dad, she decided to send him to Rio.
Ellis Hill had never driven his Uber across the river before.
Ellis Hill (right) and Liz Willock. Photo by Ellis Hill and Liz Willock/GoFundMe.
However, shuttling a passenger over the bridge to New Jersey was just the latest in a series of firsts for the Philadelphia resident in July. His son Darrell, a Penn State track and field star, had just made the U.S. Olympic team for shot put on his first try.
Ellis never really thought about joining him in Rio de Janeiro. Traveling to South America, he explained, was simply more than he could afford.
"It wasn't in the cards at all," Ellis told Upworthy. "I was thinking about getting a good bag of popcorn and sitting down to watch it on TV."
But his passenger on that Uber trip, Liz Willock, had other ideas.
"I was just crushed because any good parent would want to see their son or daughter compete as Olympian," Willock told Upworthy. "I said, 'Ellis, you're an Olympic father! You need to go.'"
Willock, who works for a company that transports medical patients to and from clinical trials, quickly realized she could use her professional connections and experience to fund and plan a trip to Rio for him.
After consulting with Ellis' son Darrell, Willock launched a GoFundMe campaign to send the Olympian's father to Rio.
The effort raised $8,200, easily exceeding its $7,500 goal.
Willock credits the efforts of dozens of strangers for helping make the fundraiser a success, including a United Airlines pilot who donated airline miles to cover Ellis' flight to Brazil and the family of Joe Kovacs, Darrell's teammate, who were the first to donate and plan to meet Ellis when he arrives in the city.
Ellis, who has never traveled out of the country before, said that he's "ecstatic" to have the opportunity to watch his son compete in the games.
"This is really a big deal in our family right now," he said.
Darrell's cheering section back home includes his mother, siblings, grandparents, and friends from all over the country — including Ellis' new colleagues at Uber, among whom he's become a celebrity.
Though he doesn't expect to see Darrell until after he competes, Ellis explained that getting to soak in his son's success is its own reward.
The Olympic rings in Rio. Photo by Chris McGrath/Getty Images.
"It's just an awesome experience for a kid to put forth the effort and stick to it over the years, and actually train ... and get it on the first time around," he said.
While he would be thrilled if Darrell were to come home with a medal, Ellis said he'll be impressed regardless.
"The family and friends are extremely happy, and we're just waiting for him to stay focused and put forth the best effort he possibly can for himself."
Beaver in water. Photo by 
An actual beaver dam on the now-thriving Price River
Not just coworkers—family, friends, strangers, kids…
Imagine having to go so badly but being out of euros. 
Anything hobbit-esque can't be wrong. 
But what if you need pain meds AND mascara?!
Imagine how this would affect childcare.
Honestly…where's the lie?
A brown buddha statue sits near a green mountain. Photo by 
Urgent dash to the bathroom! 🚪🏃♂️
Ladybug unexpectedly found during colonoscopyPhoto credit: 
Close-up of bottom of ladybug found in colonPhoto credit: 
There's a reason why some people can perfectly copy accents, and others can't
Turns out, there's a neurodivergent link.
A woman in black long sleeve shirt stands in front of mirror.
Have you ever had that friend who goes on vacation for four days to London and comes back with a full-on Queen's English posh accent? "Oooh I left my brolly in the loo," they say, and you respond, "But you're from Colorado!" Well, there are reasons they (and many of us) do that, and usually it's on a pretty subconscious level.
It's called "accent mirroring," and it's actually quite common with people who are neurodivergent, particularly those with ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder). According Neurolaunch, the self-described "Free Mental Health Library," "Accent mirroring, also known as accent adaptation or phonetic convergence, is the tendency to unconsciously adopt the accent or speech patterns of those around us. This linguistic chameleon effect is not unique to individuals with ADHD, but it appears to be more pronounced and frequent in this population."
Essentially, when people have conversations, we're constantly "scanning" for information—not just the words we're absorbing, but the inflection and tone. "When we hear an accent, our brains automatically analyze and categorize the phonetic features, prosody, and intonation patterns," writes Neurolaunch. For most, this does result in copying the accent of the person with whom we're speaking. But those with ADHD might be more sensitive to auditory cues. This, "coupled with a reduced ability to filter out or inhibit the impulse to mimic…could potentially explain the increased tendency for accent mirroring."
While the article explains further research is needed, they distinctly state that, "Accent mirroring in individuals with ADHD often manifests as an unconscious mimicry of accents in social situations. This can range from subtle shifts in pronunciation to more noticeable changes in intonation and speech rhythm. For example, a person with ADHD might find themselves unconsciously adopting a Southern drawl when conversing with someone from Texas, even if they’ve never lived in the South themselves."
People are having their say online. On the subreddit r/ADHDWomen, a thread began: "Taking on accents is an ADHD thing?" The OP shares, "My whole life, I've picked up accents. I, myself, never noticed, but everyone around me would be like, 'Why are you talking like that??' It could be after I watched a show or movie with an accent or after I've traveled somewhere with a different accent than my 'normal.'
They continue, "Apparently, I pick it up fast, but it fades out slowly. Today... I'm scrolling Instagram, I watch a reel from a comedian couple (Darcy and Jeremy. IYKYK) about how Darcy (ADHD) picks up accents everywhere they go. It's called ADHD Mirroring??? And it's another way of masking."
(The OP is referring to Darcy Michaels and his husband Jeremy Baer, who are both touring comedians based in Canada.)
Hundreds of people on the Reddit thread alone seem to relate. One comments, "Omfg I've done this my whole life; I'll even pick up on the pauses/spaces when I'm talking to someone who is ESL—but English is my first language lol."
Sometimes, it can be a real issue for those around the chameleon. "I accidentally mimicked a waitress's weird laugh one time. As soon as she was out of earshot, my family started to reprimand me, but I was already like 'oh my god I don’t know why I did that, I feel so bad.'"
Many commenters on TikTok were shocked to find out this can be a sign of ADHD. One jokes, "Omg, yes, at a store the cashier was talking to me and she was French. She's like 'Oh are you French too? No, I'm not lol. I'm very east coast Canada."
And some people just embrace it and make it work for them. "I mirror their words or phrase! I’m 30. I realized I start calling everyone sweetie cause my manager does & I work at coffee shop."