For St. Pauls High School graduating senior Elena Hernandez Velazquez, Monday night will definitely be one she won't forget. That's the night she won a 2026 Honda Civic from Lumberton Honda in Beasley Media Group's Driven 2 Excel program.
Hernandez Velazquez was one of 358 seniors from Public Schools of Robeson County who qualified this year. She was so confident she wouldn't win the car, she only told her parents she was going to be at "a school event." When she called to tell them she won a car, they didn't quite believe her either.
"They were like 'No way, you're kidding right?'" she said as she sat in the front seat of her new Honda. "I didn't think I was going to win, so I was like 'Why tell them?'"
Beasley Media of Fayetteville (Foxy 99, The Big 95.7 KML, My Kiss Radio, Sunny 94.3, 96.5 JACK FM, 107.7 The Bounce) awarded Hernandez Locklear the car from Lumberton Honda for her academic and attendance achievements this school year. To qualify, Robeson County Schools students had to maintain a GPA of 3.2 for the 2025-2026 school year, and have had no more than five unexcused absences.
Hernandez Velazquez will be heading to Fayetteville Technical Community College in the fall, and she hopes to transfer later to UNC Chapel Hill. She's going into computer science, after she said she fell in love with the idea during the pandemic.
Lumberton Honda General Manager Kent Locklear handed her the keys to the new car, as he said he loves celebrating the students in Robeson County.
"I'm not out here to give away a car, I'm out here to celebrate with all of you graduating seniors," Locklear said. "What you've done to get to this point is incredible and I'm proud to celebrate with you all."
Locklear also continued his tradition of awarding $1,000 to a teacher or faculty member of the PSRC system. This year's winner was Candice Maynor, who works in the central office.
This article was written by Brandon Plotnick of Beasley Media and republished with permission. Photos included were taken by Jessica Sealey, PSRC Chief Communications Officer.