‘I worked hard for this’: Saskatoon woman graduates high school at 45

Tammy Goldthorpe-Martens left high school when she was just 14 years old, but she always knew she’d return.

She said she left school partly because of the relentless bullying she suffered, but also to help take care of her father, who had multiple sclerosis and was wheelchair bound. She vowed to him – and to herself – that one day she would graduate from high school.

On Tuesday, Goldthorpe-Martens, now 45 years old, will finally be able to walk across the stage at TCU Place as a high school graduate after completing her final two credits.

“Kids were teasing me my entire life. I was overweight. I had braces. I didn’t care. Then they started in on my dad,” she explained. “I woke up one morning at 14 years old and decided I was done.

“I couldn’t keep battling the entire school. I had no support at all at school, so I told my mom ‘I’ll stay home and look after dad. I’m not going back to school,'” she said.

Goldthorpe-Martens said she tried home schooling, but while she was unsuccessful, her desire to finish high school never faded.

Watch Tammy try on grad dresses at the Princess Shop

“I had promised my dad I would graduate. I’m the baby; I had to graduate,” she continued.

Over the years she tried night classes and home-based learning. Later, she went to Nutana Collegiate and another institution where she was able to most of her credits. Then the COVID-19 pandemic hit and her schooling was paused.

Goldthorpe-Martens said she learned about a program at Saskatchewan Polytechnic where she enrolled to get her final two credits.

“Then my husband got sick. We’re talking almost-losing-him sick. He started getting tired and losing weight. I told him ‘If you’re not better by the time I go to school, I’m not going,'” she recalled.

Her husband started recovering in the summer of 2023, which meant Goldthorpe-Martens was able to complete her last remaining credits.

“They sent me my little piece of paper through email saying that I’d completed my adult 12 program,” she said. “I called everyone I knew. I’m a high school graduate!

“I worked hard for this. I did everything I could to go to school,” she added.

Goldthorpe-Martens said she hopes her dad, who passed away in 2005, would be proud of her.

“I’m hoping he’s happy,” she said through tears. “I did this for him.”

Choosing a graduation gown

Goldthorpe-Martens said she’s never been much of a “dress girl” and described herself as a tomboy.

“I was overweight when I got married, both times. I didn’t want to wear a wedding dress,” she said.

The first time she was married, her aunt lent her a 20-year-old dress. The second time she married, she wore her sister’s wedding dress. Her husband is also on disability right now, she said, and money is tight.

Saskatoon’s Princess Shop helps grads in need find a perfect dress. Goldthorpe-Martens filled out a request form and was able to get an appointment on May 18.

“I’ve never done this. I’ve gone to bridal shops and looked around, but I’ve never tried anything on,” she said. “I’ve never tried grad dresses on.”

Tammy tries on graduation dresses at the Princess Shop in Saskatoon. (Lara Fominoff/650 CKOM)

The Princess Shop’s Madison Wasserman helped Goldthorpe-Martens find her perfect dress: a royal-blue, floor-length dress with beading details at the waist. This year, Wasserman said they have 63 grads who are in need of dresses.

“For any Grade 12 students in Saskatoon, we provide hair, makeup and photos as well,” she explained.

The non-profit organization has about 1,000 donated dresses in stock, ranging from sizes 0 to 16+. Wasserman said 5,000 dresses have been donated in the shop’s history.

Goldthorpe-Martens said it was an experience she’ll never forget.

“I feel like a princess,” she said.

For those others who don’t finish Grade 12, for whatever reason, her advice was never to give up on yourself.

“You are worth it. Dreams are just goals that haven’t come to fruition yet. Make your goal, and then see what needs to be done to do it,” she said.