Teen Graduates the Day Before She Loses Battle With Cancer

By Beth Dalbey

Kalamazoo, Mich. – Even when it appeared she might not, Yeatise Gaines crossed the finish line.

The 17-year-old senior donned the traditional cap and gown and grasped the signed diploma in her hands on May 14, reaching a milestone she had been racing toward throughout a too-short life.

And then, the next day, she died.

Gaines had been diagnosed with cancer as an 18-month-old toddler, the Kalamazoo Gazette/MLive reports.

The cancer affected her bones and muscles, recurring when she was 2, again when she was 8, and yet again when she was 12. Treatment created lifelong health problems and difficulties, including 10 surgeries to correct chronic back problems, and radiation that damaged her lungs, causing them to eventually fail.

Last week, Gaines began running out of time and it became clear that she wouldn’t survive until the school’s June 4 commencement.

Her school’s principal, Valerie Boggan, made special arrangements with the hospital where Gaines was being treated, and  she  graduated from high school, surrounded by about 20 family members and close friends, The Daily Mail reported.

“It meant the world to her," Gaines sister, Ava, told Fox 17. "Even if it wasn't the normal [graduation], it was still really important to her."

Gaines is described by those who knew her as beautiful, talented, smart and inspirational, despite a lifetime of health problems and never ceasing pain.

Santasha Gaines said her daughter was “always happy, no matter what happened,” and determined to make the most of however short a life she might have.

When Gaines’ health deteriorated to the point she couldn’t attend school, tutor Rudy Sledge began teaching her at home. Sledge admits he may have learned more than his student did.