Mother, daughter graduate together

Commencement was a family affair for nursing graduate Samantha Whitley and her mother Candace Yow.

Whitley, 21, originally thought about pursuing a law career; however, she began work as a certified nursing assistant at Novant Health Presbyterian and realized she liked caring for people, according to an article in the Charlotte Observer.

Yow, 46, already works full time as the respiratory clinical coordinator at Novant Health Presbyterian Medical Center and as a respiratory therapist in Levine’s pediatric cardiac intensive care unit. She was awarded a Bachelor of Science in Respiratory Therapy during commencement exercises, Friday, May 13.

“My goal was to become as independent as possible on my own,” said Yow in the Charlotte Observer article; she lives in Stanfield in Stanly County. “As a single mom, it was a struggle,” but her two girls “watched my determination of getting where I needed to be in life.”

“They saw my drive to make something out of myself,” she said.

As an undergraduate, Whitley received the Scott Edward Webb Scholarship, which was established to recognize and support active members in the Chi Omega sorority who are involved in their sorority chapter and participate in extracurricular activities at UNC Charlotte. Funding for this award was made possible by the generosity of Melissa Webb.

Click here to read the entire article, written by the Charlotte Observer’s Joe Marusak.

Watch a Fox46 segment about Whitley and Yow here.