‘I didn’t give up despite hard times’
Grad inspires others with speech about how education has improved her life
Smiling faces and a sense of accomplishment were prevalent at Stella’s Circle in St. John’s on Tuesday afternoon.
A host of students were celebrating their graduation from the organization’s adult basic education (ABE) Level I program.
Joined by instructors, family and friends, they celebrated their educational achievements and each spent a moment talking about what the program has meant to them.
One of those students, Josiane Umunyurwa, 23, originally from the Congo, has been in St. John’s now for just over a year. Prior to arriving here, she spent eight years in a refugee camp in Kenya, leaving her native soil as a 14-year-old.
Some education was available, but it was not a priority for her during those eight years despite the fact she wanted to go to school and make a better life.
When she arrived in Newfoundland and Labrador, she enrolled in language school at the Association of New Canadians and completed her Level 6 studies.
Then she enrolled in the Stella’s Circle ABE Level I program, which helps adults advance their schooling.
“Now that I have completed my Level I (a Grade 7 education level), I am moving
on to Level II. I have applied to the Murphy Centre for that,” Umunyurwa said. “I want to go on to do medical research and sciences and perhaps to university as well.’’
Getting through the next two phases of her education, depending on what she wants to do, will take 18 to 30 months.
“When I moved here from my country, I was only at a Grade 4 level and now I have achieved Level 6,’’ she said. “I wasn’t moving forward, but I didn’t give up. My English wasn’t very good, but I worked at it. I still
don’t think it is very good, but I am working on it.”
Umunyurwa and her family — including her mother, father, brother and sister — applied for refugee status and just over a year ago and moved halfway around the globe to this province.
She said her time at Stella’s Circle has been great. In addition to learning English, Umunyurwa has gained the ability to communicate with people better.
“We also learned how to work as a team, how to help each other,’’ she said.
Tuesday’s event also featured a guest speaker, someone with direct ties to Stella’s Circle.
Linda Richards graduated from the same program four short years ago. She came back to tell the graduates about her success afterward, which includes tackling Levels II and III — she’ll graduate from that program at the Discovery Centre next week.
“I had a good story to tell. I didn’t give up despite hard times,’’ she said.
“I have gone through it and have come back to tell you how to get through it.’’
Included in her story was dealing with cancer. Richards was diagnosed with cervical and ovarian cancer in 2014 and forced to take two six-month sabbaticals from her education, the second one to have surgery to remove the cancer. Today she is cancer free and ready to graduate with her Grade 12 equivalency.
“I went through a lot, but I got through it. If you are thinking about going back to school, go for it! You have nothing to lose and everything to gain,” Richards said.
“This spring, I finished the last of my courses and am graduating with my Grade 12 diploma. I am on Cloud 9! I am happy that I have made it through.
“I can’t predict the future, but I feel positive about my life.”
She said she always had trouble in school as a child, especially reading. She finished Grade 11, bur said she was just pushed through, and she went to work at home care.
But not being able to read or write made it difficult to prepare the necessary reports, which led to her being laid off.
“I decided then it was time to go back to school. I enrolled in the ABE Level I program at Stella’s Circle. I was scared at first because I didn’t know what to expect,” she said.
Her reading and writing skills improved and she also discovered she had good math skills. She was able to make great friends through the program and developed allies and supports that helped her reach her goals.
“One of my proudest moments was when I was nominated for the Council of the Federation Literacy Award in 2014. My teacher Jessica (Leemiddleman), helped me to complete the application. Then I learned that I had won! It was fantastic to see that my hard work was being recognized,’’ she said.
Richards also performs in the Stella’s Circle Inclusion Choir. The emphasis is on the joy and fun of singing. There are no tryouts; it’s a place of acceptance and an opportunity to be a part of something bigger.