Through July 4, The Post, in conjunction with the Milken Center for Advancing the American Dream, is featuring US citizens explaining what the American dream means to them in 2026 — including Freddie Figgers. At the age of 16, Figgers founded Figgers Communications, a telecom company that provides wireless service to over 280 million people nationwide. He is also the founder of the Figgers Foundation, which has donated nearly $8 million worth of resources and programming to over 27,000 families.
I was born in Quincy, Florida. I was abandoned at birth. The woman that birthed me, she threw me away. And so I was adopted by a 68-year-old man and a 54-year-old woman that took me and raised me as their own.
My father started developing dementia — Alzheimer’s — and, at the age of 13. I dropped out of school because this same man that took me and raised me, gave me his last name, I wasn’t going to allow him to go into a nursing facility.
Long story short, my father just wandered off. He would leave in the mornings — no shirt and no pants, but he’d always have his shoes on. So, being a little tinkerer, running around the house, taking apart alarm clocks, VCRs and television components, I created a chip set and put it into the sole of his shoe.
I integrated that with a WAN-card, a 3G cellular signal, a microphone and a speaker. I integrated an API to my Windows computer and had an application sync with Garmin [GPS]. So, I could press a button and say, ‘Hey, Daddy, where are you?’ And I could literally see the radius of where he was located. I would hop in his Lincoln Town Car and go pick him up.
The same way he saved my life, I was gonna save his life.
The American dream, to me, is free enterprise — having the freedom to create, having the freedom to invent and to be yourself, making a difference in the lives of others, and just living out your full potential without limitations.
The American Dream Video Project showcases real stories that illuminate pathways to opportunity. Featured at the Milken Center for Advancing the American Dream (MCAAD), this series is part of the Center’s celebration of America’s 250th anniversary. MCAAD is Washington, DC’s newest cultural institution, offering interactive exhibits and stories about achieving the American Dream. For more information, visit mcaad.org.
