TRAVERSE CITY At 16, Tioloman Traore had never seen snow before.

On the day she first arrived in northern Michigan in February 2019, Traore only had a light jacket to face the Michigan cold and pants that exposed her ankles to the freezing breeze. When her foster mother brought her mittens, Traore wasnt sure how to put them on.

She laughs about it now. Snow, mittens these things have become such a natural part of her life in Traverse City. Traores journey to the U.S. and her navigation through school and life in Traverse City has been all about adjusting.

Traore grew up in a small village in Cte dIvoire. By the time she was 8 years old, both of her birth parents had died and she began living with her grandmother. At 15, her grandmother pulled her from school; She wanted Traore to marry.

Traore thought about her birth mother, who always told her about the value of an education.

She was just like, focus on school, Traore said of her mother. She wanted me to be successful in school.

She resolved to leave her grandmother and go to a refugee camp, her best chance at being able to continue her education.

After spending nearly a year in a refugee camp a year of details Traore keeps mostly to herself Traore came to Traverse City as an unaccompanied minor refugee through Bethany Christian Services. Paige and Ben Waldron and their kids, Ingrid and Jonas, picked Traore up from the airport and welcomed her with open arms.

Our first impressions of her was that she was very graceful, Paige said.

Ingrid and Jonas were excited to have an older sister that they quickly started admiring. After meeting her new younger siblings, Traore wanted to be a good example for them.

Just two weeks after coming to northern Michigan, Traore entered school as a freshman. She remembers sitting in the Traverse City Central High School principals office with an interpreter, listening to the adults in the room talk about her and what classes she would have to take and struggling to follow along.

It was very challenging, Traore said. I didnt speak any English.

The first few weeks at TC Central were overwhelming. Traore, who spoke mostly just French, had to strike a balance between getting in the classes she needed to graduate on time and learning the language to do so. Between lessons, she also had to figure out the new technology in front of her and the culture of the foreign place she landed in.

She also struggled to make connections. Other students would approach Traore and say theyd like to be her friend, but she couldnt keep up with their conversations.

Oftentimes, frustration and fear welled up inside of her. She wanted so badly to be able to learn and get to know the people around her, but she struggled with the isolation and confusion of not understanding the language of her teachers or her peers.

Id just go to the bathroom and cry, because I dont know what the teachers talking about, Traore said.

At that time, Traore found comfort in the company of Jami Grant, a French teacher at TC Central. Grant had Traore in class and helped her with her French writing and grammar and her English lessons.

Grant remembers Traores warmth and generous spirit being prevalent from their first meeting. She came to know Traore as a polite, resilient and hardworking student.

Its like her gratitude for life is just tangible. Thats the way she carries herself, Grant said. Its been super, super special to have her be here with us.

Grant wanted to make her classroom a safe space for Traore to be, where she could feel at ease in a language that she had a full grasp on. The two bonded over many things, including their love of running. Traore would often leave notes on Grants desk thanking her teacher for her kindness.

Traores passion for school shone through as she worked through learning English, and Grant was amazed by her work ethic.

That authentic desire that she had to gain command in both languages, her diligent efforts, she never let an occasion to learn or to grow pass her by, Grant said. It was super inspiring to watch through the three years.

Paige and Ben spent the first few months talking to Traore solely through Google Translate. It was difficult, but they still found ways to bond through games, cooking and trips to the beach.

After school, Paige and Ben would help Traore with homework. Traores perseverance hardly wavered. She would spend hours working through ESL workbooks or taking lessons on apps like Duolingo in her free time.

Shes a very beautiful person and kind and gracious and very determined, Paige said. She is the hardest worker I know.

About three months after Traore arrived in the States, she and Paige had their first real conversation. Traore developed a stronger grasp on English as the weeks went on and became more comfortable in her lessons and more confident in her ability to speak English and do her homework, and she soon got involved with the Track and Cross Country sports teams.

On Sunday, Traore will graduate with TC Centrals class of 2022. So many of the people who have known her since her first few weeks in Traverse City her foster parents, her younger siblings, her French teacher are immensely proud of her and looking forward to what she does next.

After graduation, Traore will go on to Western Michigan University to study nursing. More specifically, Traore wants to be a hospice nurse because, as a very young child, she didnt have the ability to properly support or comfort her mother when she passed away. In the future, she wants to be able to be there for others in their last moments.

School was hard to begin with, but Traore said she was always happy to be back in a classroom and grateful for the support she felt from her community and her foster parents.

When times were hard, the desire to fill her head with knowledge motivated her. When she thinks of the future, she thinks of her birth mother, who valued her daughters education and instilled a drive to learn and keep pushing forward.

She was amazing, Traore said of her birth mother. I think I want to be successful, not just for me, but to honor her.

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Motivated by education: After overcoming struggles as a refugee, TC Central student looks ahead - Traverse City Record Eagle