EMERYVILLE, Calif. (KGO) — A UC Berkeley student from San Jose got a special surprise at the Chick-fil-A in Emeryville Tuesday.
Danna Avila, who attends UC Berkeley and works at Chick-fil-A was greeted by Andrew T. Cathy, the CEO of Chick-fil-A who surprised the team member with a $25,000 scholarship.
“The journey has been so long and difficult and getting an opportunity like this,” Avila said. “I can’t even put it into words how thankful I am.”
MORE: Daly City high school student surprised with $25,000 scholarship from Chick-fil-A
“She’s worked really, really hard to keep up her grades, a volunteer in the community,” Cathy said. “She’s had a lot of leadership roles here in the restaurant, somebody that just has a clear vision for the future, what she wants to do and we just want to come along and help support her.”
Avila, 22, worked at the Sunnyvale location before attending Cal and still works there during her breaks.
She is a first-generation college student and her family joined in on the celebration, teary-eyed as they hugged her with pride.
One of the Chick-fil-A cows even got in on the surprise.
“Seeing them being here and crying for me and just seeing how proud they are of me, it’s a feeling I will never get over,” she said.
Avila plans to go to medical school with the goal of becoming an oncologist.
“The healthcare system is very much broken and I think there needs to be things done to fix it and if I could give back to my community, other communities, it would be amazing,” Avila said.
MORE: ‘I’m forever grateful’: Cheyney University student chosen as Disney UNCF Scholar
Cathy said they’ve awarded more than $200 million in scholarships since 1973.
This year, the company is investing $29 million in scholarships to more than 16,000 team members, with thirteen of them being $25,000. Like Avila’s.
“I’m so grateful,” she said.
Copyright © 2026 KGO-TV. All Rights Reserved.