Holliston native the co-founder of Instagram

HOLLISTON, Mass. (WHDH) -- Holliston native Kevin Systrom co-founded the popular mobile photo app Instagram, and is now worth a reported $400 million.

Systrom’s popular mobile photo app Instagram was snatched up by Facebook for $1 billion in cash and stock.

“I think it’s great for the neighborhood, I can say I knew him. It’s nice to hear some good news about good, honest work. And he had a great idea. And good for him,” said Pamela Hart, a Holliston resident.

The 28-year-old grew up on a quiet, tree-lined street and went to middle school in town.

But it was in high school that Systrom cultivated his love for computers and photography.

He was a boarding student at the Middlesex School in Concord. Systrom had a broad variety of friends and was passionate about what he did.

Fellow students and faculty couldn’t say enough about the 2002 alumnus.

“It’s the kind of success you’d wish for every hardworking, bright, creative, talented young guy,” said Kathleen Giles, Head of Middlesex School.

Fellow alumni of the Middlesex School include former Governor Bill Weld and actor Steve Carell of ‘The Office.’

The school has a relatively small student body -- just 375 students -- and a relatively large tuition, about $50,000 per year.

“This is pretty amazing stuff for a young guy, and we're really delighted for him and wondering where the rest of his career is going to take him,” Giles said.

Systrom comes from a family of successes. His father is a vice president at the TJX Companies Inc. in Framingham and his mother is an executive at Zipcar in Cambridge.

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