Hours Before Her Death, Local Mom Gets to See Daughter Graduate

For many students in Calcasieu Parish, the coronavirus pandemic really put a damper on graduation ceremonies. For Oakdale High School senior, Korean Antoine, her graduation memories will forever be bittersweet. Her school will have a graduation ceremony in June, but her mother, Shareka, will not be able to attend.

Demetria Tolbert told 7 NEWS her sister wanted nothing more than to see her baby's graduation. Her niece is the youngest of four siblings to graduate high school, so this was a big day for the family. However, whether Shareka could hold on or not was very uncertain.

According to KPLC, Demetria went to work and got in touch with Oakdale High School's principal, Brad Soileu, to see if they could put something together. Thanks to Facebook, she was able to contact him, and even better, they came up with the perfect plan. Principal Soileu told the news they decided to give Korean a special graduation at home so that her mother wouldn't miss her big day.

It was a graduation he would never forget!

Congratulations Korean, we know you will continue to make your mom proud. Reach for the stars! Our heartfelt condolences go out to you and your entire family