|
Diane Toole is going to have to move fast commencement weekend.
Thursday through Saturday, she plans on attending a multitude of events for her three daughters, including individual graduation ceremonies for each of them. The young women will receive bachelor's degrees from the University.
"I'm hoping everybody will pray for me that I'll have time to get out of one ceremony and to the next one on time," said Toole, a certified dental assistant and single parent who helped guide her daughters through their undergraduate years.
"I'm ecstatic that we've all made this accomplishment. It's awesome," she said.
Most observers would agree.
Toole's late husband, Mike Toole, a Columbia audit director and 1976 Carolina graduate, died in 2003, suddenly thrusting her into the role of a single parent whose children all wanted to attend college.
"I didn't think I'd ever be able to do it," said Toole, recalling the difficult time she and her family had after her husband's death when the family was "at loose ends" and the future wasn't clear.
Somehow their cohesion inspired the three close-knit girls to come up with a plan: not only would all of them go to the University of South Carolina at once while living at home with their mother, they would also graduate together.
The oldest, Jennifer, 22, enrolled at Midlands Tech for one year to wait for her twin sisters, Michelle and Morgan, 21, to finish high school before the three started at Carolina.
This weekend, Jennifer will receive her degree in education with honors, while Michelle and Morgan will receive their degrees in nursing and biology/pre-med, respectively.
How did they do it?
In a word, scholarships, part-time jobs, student loans, spiritual guidance, and "people in the community who cared about the family," Diane said.
Morgan and Michelle both won hefty Horatio Alger scholarships, while Morgan won a lottery-funded Palmetto Fellows Scholarship and Michelle won a lottery-funded Life Scholarship. They also got Rotary scholarships and University scholarships. Jennifer won a Life Scholarship and received a student loan, which she'll get help repaying when she begins work as a teacher in the fall at Wood Elementary School in Lexington.
The three also worked at the offices of doctors in the community who were "very kind and generous to give them jobs that kept them close at hand for me while I worked," said Diane.
"I was blessed to have people who cared enough about us to help us through a tough time. We've been very fortunate."
The whole experience has been an object lesson in learning to grow together and help other families, Diane said, noting that Morgan became a speaker for Mental Health of America to let audiences know that "no matter what happens in the way of tragedies in your life, you can keep going and you can succeed."
"It's been a busy time and an emotional time," said Diane. "Losing their dad wasn't easy, but somewhere along the way the girls drew on a strength that pulled them together. They were determined to succeed and to move forward. That is what their father would have wanted."
5/08
|
Tight-knit family cohesion helped Diane Toole guide her three daughters through the University with flying colors. From left front, Morgan, Jennifer, and Michelle; in back, Diane.
