Gwinnett Co. senior never missed a day of school since first grade
By Amanda Rose
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ATLANTA, Georgia (WANF) — – Most of us will never lay our eyes on a ‘perfect attendance’ award.
Let alone, take one home.
As for Brookwood High School senior, Hailey Garner, she has three from elementary, middle, and high school.
“It wasn’t something that was planned, it just happened,” said Hailey Garner.
Garner’s modest.
Her parents, however, love to brag about her accomplishments.
“Whatever she wants to do, she excels in it,” said Emily Garner, Hailey’s mother.
The 17-year-old has dealt with her fair share of hardships.
Garner’s grandfather on her father’s side passed away when she was in kindergarten. That’s the only time, her parents say, Garner ever missed a day of school.
Years later, Garner suffered another great loss, her other grandfather to cancer.
“She was so close to him. She went to treatments with him, she was always there for him,” said Emily Garner.
Garner turned her grief into action.
She decided to become a doctor and to specialize in oncology. Her ‘perfect attendance, ‘was a way to achieve that goal and to honor both of her grandfathers’ memories.
“They wouldn’t want me to be down and depressed about it, so I did what they wanted me to do. And I’m sure they’re proud of me now,” Hailey Garner said.
It paid off.
Garner was accepted into the Honor’s College at Augusta University.
“You will get somewhere as long as you keep trying, if you don’t try it’s not going to work,” said Hailey Garner.
Garner’s parents believe she’s capable of changing the world, and her 12 years of never being absent are all the proof they need.
“Oncology which is very, very heavy is going to require that commitment. And I think that commitment is what’s going to get her through,” said Isaiah Garner, Hailey’s father.
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