SALT LAKE CITY -- It was a case of being in the wrong place at the right time. Brittany Hooker, a Corner Canyon High School student, walked into Utah Valley University for her commencement only to find a sea of unfamiliar faces. So she went up to a teacher to see what was going on.
"I asked her what school was going on right now and it was Riverton," the teen said.
Her mom, along with twelve relatives up in the stands, were about to get a phone call none of them imagined.
"She called me because she was already down in the tunnel and was like, 'Just so you know, we're in the wrong place,'" said Amy Hooker, Brittany's mom.
Instantly she knew the mistake was not Brittany's, but her own. You see, Amy thought the invitation said UVU not U of U.
"I said I did it again, this is not where we're supposed to be and everybody just laughed at me," Amy Hooker said.
Brittany's actual graduation was 44 miles away. There was little chance they could make it in time, so rather than miss a milestone, Brittany turned to Riverton teacher Buffy Blunck.
"At first I was like are you kidding me? Are you joking? This is Riverton's graduation," Blunck said.
But then Blunck did something else. She helped Brittany, wearing the same color of gown as the rest of the women graduating, be a part of the ceremony.
"I sat through the whole ceremony and walked and received a Riverton diploma," Brittany Hooker said.
The family got their graduation moment, and when Brittany found her mom after the ceremony, she got something more than just a great story to tell.
"I said, 'Sorry, I'll take you on a cruise to make up for it,'" Amy Hooker said.
