RAISING THE BAR 

Amongst Tamara Charles’ greatest desires for Jazmyne Williana Balan-Charles is that her daughter would someday never have to weather the types of adversities she endured when she was her age.

“Jazmyne watched me struggled as a single mom raising her and her siblings, working two jobs and going to school after work to come home and cook dinner at 10 p.m. at night,” Charles told Making Headline News during its annual Salute To Graduate Tributes.

“I knew my daughter didn’t want to experience what I’ve went through, being a single mom with four kids. I taught all my kids that education is the key to success, and as her mother, I stayed on top of her education. I knew Jazmyne would be successful.”

To her credit, coupled with the valiant support of her mother, Jazmyne has steadfastly made good on her pledge to her mother when she earned her undergraduate degree on May 19 from Salem State University in Salem, Massachusetts.

A former Framingham State University student who transferred from nearby Framingham, Massachusetts-based institution after her freshman year to be closer to her twin brother and the rest of the family, Jazmyne capped off her undergraduate tenure by graduating with honors, having amassed an impressive cumulative grade point average of 4.0.

In a nutshell, that meant that the only “C” this academically gifted student had witnessed during her undergraduate days was that which jumpstarted her last name.

That Tamara Charles is overwhelmingly proud of her new college graduate essentially goes without saying.

“I am beyond proud of my daughter,” said Charles, an Atlanta-area businesswoman who was born in Port Au Prince, Haiti, but relocated to the United States in 1986 at the tender age of seven. “Jazmyne was never a young girl to try to fit in with other girls. Her circle was her family from both sides…from her father and mom’s side of the family.”

For Jazmyne, the immeasurable, close-knit bond she’s established with her loved ones has played a major factor in the success she’s enjoyed since making the transition from high school to college.

“She hung out with her aunties and cousins,” said Charles, recalling her daughter’s memorable college journey. “Jazmyne’s type of sleepovers was that I’m going to auntie so and so’s house. There wasn’t, ‘Oh I’m going to sleep over at my friends’ house.’ She was mentored and guided by a whole lot of successful women, so I never doubted that my daughter wouldn’t be successful as well.”

Once Jazmyne’s name was called and echoed through the loudspeaker to receive her degree, Charles contends she was the happiest mother in the place, happy that she was blessed to have worked diligently to help propel her daughter to yet another major milestone.

So much, in fact, that she had to reach for the nearest Kleenex to absorb the tears that spilled out of her eyes.

“It was a proud moment for me,” Charles said. “The tears came rolling down but it was tears of joy…tears that my daughter wasn’t another statistic. Jazmyne just turn 22 on May 6. When I was 22, I had a set of twins, a girl and boy with no college degree. And to see your firstborn and first heartbeat didn’t follow your footsteps and did it differently is a mother’s dream come true.”

Her daughter’s latest dream, by all accounts, has become a reality, in large part because of what her mother describes as “tough love,” meaning her children — despite her flurry of ill-advised decisions during her youth — were routinely held accountable and to a higher standard if they failed to meet her lofty expectations.

“Yes, I showed my kids tough love, but that’s because I wanted them to know nothing is given to them,” Charles explained. “If you want something, you have to go out there in this cold world and get it. It’s not going to be easy, but giving up was never an option in my book and I continue to pass that same mentality to my children.”

Because after all, amongst Charles’ greatest desires for her children was that they would someday never have to weather the types of adversities she endured when she was age.

So far, so good, especially for her firstborn whom, to her credit, is already raising the bar for her younger siblings to follow — or perhaps surpass.

“I tell them every day, ‘I never ever want to see any of my children struggle like I did, so keep pushing. Anything and everything you set your mind to, you can do it,’” Charles said.

Much to delight of mom, her oldest child had been listening, as evidence by the college degree she inherited just last weekend.

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EDITOR’S NOTE: Whether your child has already graduated or not, if you would like to pay homage to his/her accomplishments with a unique Salute To Graduates Tribute that will feature a story like the one above with multiple photos, call Reporter Andre Johnson at 901-690-6587 or Facebook message him under “Andre T. Johnson” for details.

Andre Johnson is the award-winning Founder and Publisher for Making Headline News. A 2000 graduate of the University of Memphis School of Journalism and a former staff reporter of sports for the Memphis Commercial Appeal newspaper, Johnson covers the NBA Southwest Division from Dallas, Texas. To reach Johnson, send email to [email protected] or to [email protected]. Also, follow him on Twitter @AJ_Journalist.