Whenever you feel like giving up on your dreams even though it's just a stone's throw away, think about the likes of Martece Yates who prove that everything is attainable with strong will and hard work. It's old news to hear someone graduate late but every story of long-earned success is extraordinary, and that of Martece Yates' is no exception.
The Washington Post tells the tale of Martece Yates who graduated from college 20 years later than most people would in their lifetime. In the 1990s, like any other decent high school student, Yates applied to universities and got a couple of acceptance letters. And you all know what would happen next, she didn't go to any.
In 1988, a businessman offered to pay for the college education of Yates and 66 other students from Kramer Middle School as part of his "I Have A Dream Program." The students would enjoy free schooling if they can graduate from college within six years after high school.
In an account published on Southeast67.com, Martece Yates recalls that day when she found out that she was chosen to be part of the program. She was very excited because it had always been her dream to go to college.
"It wasn't like our (family) circumstances were despair. But when it came to college, I would have been first generation. So, it was just amazing that someone who was rich wanted to do this with their money. It gave me my first sense of charity," she wrote.
Even with high hopes and diligent work as a high school student, Martece Yates' ticket to college was thrown away. Her mother got addicted to drugs and she and her sister had to take charge of the household.
When it was time to choose a college she got accepted to, she declined and chose to stay at home. She was afraid her mom would overdose and harm herself. For the next 19 years, she would work an administrative job at American Health Care Association.
Yates would then have her own family with the said job helping her raise two children, and what got her to college in 2009. She managed to juggle her studies, full-time job and family life all at the same time, in order to graduate from Trinity Washington University on May 21,2016 with a Bachelor's degree in Nursing.
"Martece Yates, B.S.N.!" getting that announcement at graduation. I'm excited about it; I can't wait. I mean, of course, I've taken the tougher road, but you know, it's all about completing it at the end. And then all the people I get to thank afterwards," Martece Yates said in a profile published on Fulfilling the Dream.
Martece Yates fulfilled her dream at 40. She is now a college graduate.
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