97-Year-Old Woman Graduates From Secondary School

Last updated: 2015/11/01 at 8:11 AM

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Catholic Central High School Principal Greg Deja, left, presents 97-year-old Margaret Thome Bekema with her honorary diploma at Stonebridge Manor on Thursday, Oct. 29, 2015 in Grand Rapids, Mich.. Bekema began her education at Catholic Central in 1932 but sacrificed completing her degree at that time to take care of her mother who had cancer and her younger siblings. (Emily Rose Bennett/The Grand Rapids Press via AP) ALL LOCAL TELEVISION OUT; LOCAL TELEVISION INTERNET OUT; MANDATORY CREDIT (Emily Rose Bennett | MLive.com)

For Margaret Thome Bekema, friends and members of her family who came to cheer her, all is well that ends well.

The 97-year-old woman finally achieved her dream of going to school after she was awarded an honorary diploma by a high school in the State of Michigan, United States of America.

The school, Catholic Central High School in Grand Rapids, presented her with her high school diploma on Thursday.

She had initially been enrolled in the school and would have graduated with the class of 1936 but dropped out to take care of her three younger siblings because her mother had cancer and had become too ill to take care of them.

In her reaction, the nonagenarian said it broke her heart to have dropped out of school when she did and she expressed her gratitude to the school for the honour and recognition accorded her with the diploma presented to her.