Chantel Rodriguez

Staff Writer

CVR5570@PSU.EDU  

Brian Acosta-Arya, owner of the Lincoln Tunnel Motel in North Bergen, New Jersey, uses his growing social media fame from TikTok to garner support for other individuals around his community who seek shelter. 

Since he was a child, Acosta-Arya’s family has been in the motel business, so the company was familiar with him and had a special place in his heart. Growing up, he didn’t realize the impact his father was making or, even now, his impact with the help of millions around the world. 

Brian Acosta-Arya never really wanted to follow in his father’s footsteps as he traveled to Los Angeles to further his career in the entertainment business. But after moving back home, his father handed over the torch to him, and he gladly agreed to move on with the company. 

After owning the business for twelve years, Acosta-Arya realized what place his father truly held in the community as a generous man to his neighbors, so he wanted to highlight that by using social media. He had no idea that it would turn into what it is today. Brian, known as the Motel Guy, @LTMotel, on TikTok, has amassed over 860,000 followers. 

During the pandemic, there was an increase of people struggling with housing, whether they lost a job, landlords had evicted them from their homes, or people lost loved ones who were the primary financial support to their family. Almost everyone was affected, minorly or majorly, during the pandemic. Brian Arya wanted to support his community by allowing any follower of his on TikTok or anyone from near or far a free night stay at the motel with no questions asked. 

He had the idea to start the “Free Room for You” program, and the TikTok frenzy began. A small challenge like this helped create notoriety around the Lincoln Tunnel Motel. It garners much support from the surrounding communities and other parts of the United States globally. 

Followers from the social media platform were pitching in donations like money, food supplies, and toiletries for the motel residents. Brian Arya also allows individuals just to come in to cover the rent of a room for others who need it, kind of like a “Pay it Forward” gesture. 

A local college found the motel through scrolling on TikTok, and the students decided to donate food to the motel residents from their student pantry because they wanted to help during a difficult time. Individuals from throughout the country have also contributed to fulfilling Brian’s Amazon wish list – supplies from charities and homeless shelters locally, so more resources could be split between all of them equally.  

It’s all about generosity, kindness and lending out a helping hand when you can. People worldwide are helping strangers who would otherwise be struggling by themselves with no help from anyone or struggling to get the services they need because they do not have access to many resources. The benefit of using social media platforms is how fast things can get accomplished. 

Everyone who uses social media has access to information in a matter of seconds with the ability to share links, like posts, or spread it by word of mouth, so maybe the next person could donate or share the information also. These are the moments where technology shows its good qualities because of how fast we can help each other, even if we are strangers.