WEST MIAMI-DADE, FLA. (WSVN) - Hundreds of South Florida college students walked across the stage to receive their diplomas this Mother’s Day weekend, and for one of them, the milestone meant that much more after having overcome heartbreaking adversity.
On his graduation day, Saturday, Florida International University student Anthon Samuel beamed with pride. He said arriving at this moment has been a long and arduous journey. “As a young kid, losing your father at a very young age, it’s a difficult challenge,” he said. “However, I was able to get through that, and my mom had said, if I can get through that, I can get through anything.”
At the age of 7, days before his birthday, Samuel witnessed his father being murdered outside their Opa-locka home. “So, like any obstacle that I faced in life, I just kept going,” he said, “because I always reflected to the time I lost my father, and it always made it easier, and it’s because of that, that I came this far today.”
Not only is Samuel earning his degree from FIU’s College of Nursing and Health Sciences. He is also being recognized as a Worlds Ahead graduate by FIU President Mark Rosenberg, for being a top student, an FIU football player and for being an inspiration to those around him.
Samuel said he’s using adversity to encourage others, often visiting elementary schools and speaking to children about the importance of education while touching on topics that hit close to home. “I wanted to raise the awareness of the gun violence that’s happening against the kids,” he said.
And he’s created films doing just that. Anthon said getting to this point goes back to a promise he made as a boy. “I made a promise to my mother and my grandmother that I will graduate, and I wanted them to see me do this,” he said, “so that’s why it was so important for me to get my degree.”
Samuel’s mother and grandmother said it’s the ultimate Mother’s Day gift to watch him keep that promise, despite the challenges along the way. “Most kids, when they’re statistics, when they lose their parents at a young age, they go astray, but I stayed on him,” said Sonya Stevenson, Samuel’s mother. “I pushed him, I encouraged him, and I’m just very, very, very proud of him.”
And this is just the beginning for a young man who is not only soaring but also helping others spread their wings, too. “I am extremely, extremely proud of him, and I know his father will be,” said Agatha Samuel, his grandmother.
FIU graduation ceremonies continue through Wednesday, with approximately 5,000 graduates walking across the stage.
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