'Grandma Uber' goes viral in bid to keep young Brisbane women safe
A Brisbane grandmother's tireless campaign to keep young women safe is going viral.
Kathy Raydings’ door-to-door service has helped thousands of people, including some of Queensland's most famous faces.
She's the grandma driven by maternal instinct to get “as many home safe as possible".
In the past seven months, Ms Raydings has driven more than 5,000 young women across Brisbane and the Gold Coast home safely.
“There are horrendous stories, I've heard it so many times from my riders,” she told 7 News.
“They should be able to go out, have their great night out and not have the stress about coming home and who's going to pick them up.”
One passenger, Amy O’Farrell, was touched by Ms Raydings’ efforts and decided to spread the word about ‘Grandma Uber’ on social media, attracting almost 5,000 likes in 24 hours.
“It's fun and it's nurturing and she helps you with your life," she said.
The social media campaign, including an Instagram account, soon had celebrity endorsement.
Singer Amy Sheppard from indie-pop band Sheppard managed to hitch a ride.
“Once I had her I was like real excited, got a selfie with her and I was like thanks, she got me home safely," Ms Sheppard said.
Grandma Uber’s phone has not stopped since and, just one day after undergoing back surgery, she was back on the road.
Dozens of partygoers will tonight get home safely because of her, but if that isn't enough, Grandma Uber supplies drinks and even bakes brownies for her passengers to make sure they don't go hungry on the way home.
She is also recruiting for her own fleet of Uber grannies.
