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This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Nick Parker. It has been edited for length and clarity.
Any parent knows that having a flexible job is important. You might need to stop working at a moment’s notice to go pick up a sick kid or be home for two weeks while the stomach flu works its way through the family.
For me, this is even more important. I’ve got three kids and they all have autism. My son, 9, didn’t speak for a long time, but with early intervention, he’s thriving. My middle daughter, 7, is nonverbal and uses a touchscreen device to communicate. My youngest, 4, talks up a storm but has big feelings.
I was never diagnosed with autism, but growing up, I was very similar to my son. I had a hard time in school, so it’s important to me to be there as much as possible for the kids. My wife and I even drive them to a district 15 minutes away because that school can better meet their needs.
Last August, I quit my full-time job and started doing DoorDash to make ends meet. At that job, my boss said we were a family, but he didn’t understand when I needed to leave early to pick up one of the kids. Now, I can just cancel a Dash if the kids need me.
Therapy costs contributed to us being foreclosed on
Raising three kids with autism is expensive. Therapy costs thousands — so much that we eventually had to stop going, even though the kids could still benefit from it. Medication is pricey too; even a jump from $30 to $72 hits our family hard, and it’s worse when we need to pay out of pocket. Then we have incidental costs, like extra laundry we need to do or new glasses, which my middle child tends to break often.
I usually make about $20 an hour doing DoorDash. It’s decent, but it’s not always enough. Last December, my family was in a rough place. The bank had started foreclosure proceedings on our home, and we were about $10,000 behind in payments.
Reels about DoorDash gave my family a fresh start
I’ve always been pretty funny, and my laugh is so genuine that people love it. I used to make about $400 a month filming reaction reels on Facebook. Eventually, I transitioned to TikTok, where I started sharing stories about DoorDash — like the time I was towed, so I ate the food I was delivering after the order was canceled.
I speak about the struggles my family has. I posted a reel about how I was DoorDashing 24/7 to try to make enough money to stop the foreclosure. It had more than 1 million views. Three days later I posted a reel about DoorDashing with my youngest daughter in tow. That one had 10 million views.
Those reels led to about $4,000 in income from TikTok. Then, we were able to raise about $20,000 through GoFundMe. It was a fresh start for my family. We stopped the foreclosure and are still up to date with payments.
Sometimes I deliver with all my kids
For a while, I worked DoorDash at night until about 2 a.m., but I was very grouchy in the mornings. Now, my schedule is a bit more balanced. I try to work the most while my youngest is at preschool. I listen to sports radio in the car and sometimes call into discussions about my favorite Detroit teams.
When my youngest gets home around 11:30 a.m., I bring her with me for a few more hours of delivering. A little bribery goes a long way. I often stop at the dollar store to buy her a new toy to keep her entertained or get McDonald’s for a snack.
Sometimes, I deliver with all three kids. The older two play on their tablets. They don’t have much patience, but I explain to them that we’ve got to pay the bills.
I want them to know I did my best for them as they grow up. I hope they can find a way to be creative and think outside the box to find a life that’s best for their family like I have done.
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