'The Timing Is Devastating': Coronavirus Forces New Elk Grove School Shuttle Service To Hit The Brakes
ELK GROVE (CBS13) – Some of the more than 30 million unemployment filings during the coronavirus pandemic are by business owners who have been forced to stop operations, and that includes an Elk Grove entrepreneur who launched an Uber-style drop-off service for school children – just as every school shut down.
Elk Grove's Kevin Lillard launched his dream business, Prodigy Children's Shuttle Service, after leaving his job with the state.
"I left the state February 11, and I started this business fully on February 11," he said.
Less the one month later his business hit the brakes.
"The timing is devastating," Lillard said. "It's really devastating."
Lillard said everything got shut down on March 9.
Prodigy had been 18 months in the making, and every dollar put into it came out of Lillard's own pocket. The business was a new concept in school drop-offs, which delivered children to and from school with an Uber-style shuttle. When the state ordered schools to shut down due to the coronavirus, Lillard's business immediately hit the skids.
"I gave up my job at the state, I gave up my time and my money, so yeah, it's tough," he said.
The coronavirus crisis is forcing Lillard to take a detour and put his dreams on hold while finding work somewhere else for now.
"I really want to get this thing going as soon as we can do it safely and responsibly," Lillard said of Prodigy. "Just to see the success I had then -- that's something I hold onto that allows me to keep saying, 'OK, when this is over we're going to get prodigy going again.' "
Lillard says he filed and was approved for unemployment right away, but he's still waiting to receive a check from the state.