For Darcey Meus, crossing the stage at The University of North Carolina at Pembroke on Friday will be a powerful moment of triumph. After a grueling battle with cancer, earning her MBA is a testament to her faith, resilience, and love.

“I’m deeply grateful to have the strength to walk across that stage,” Meus said. “And for the strength to do anything I want because that was not always the case for me.”

Just three years ago, Meus faced a life-threatening diagnosis. Doctors found a softball-sized tumor in her chest and a smaller mass on her kidney after she experienced excruciating pain in her shoulder and a swollen throat. She was diagnosed with Stage 3 primary mediastinal large B-cell lymphoma, a rare form of non-Hodgkin lymphoma, and endured brutal rounds of chemotherapy.

Through it all, Meus’s faith and determination to be there for her daughter, Esther, kept her fighting. At the time, Esther was in kindergarten and unable to visit her mother in the hospital’s cancer ward.

“I was going to make sure that I did everything I needed to do to be around to watch her grow up,” she said. “My daughter was too young to be allowed in the cancer ward in the hospital. So, I had to go for extended periods without seeing her. That was the most difficult part of this journey.”

On Friday, 9-year-old Esther and Meus’s mother will proudly watch Meus cross the stage at Givens Performing Arts Center to receive her MBA from UNCP’s Graduate School. Meus will be among the sea of 1,008 graduates who will participate in Winter Commencement this weekend.

The Charlotte resident has already begun applying her studies and research as a geospatial analyst with Ahold Delhaize––the parent company of Food Lion. 

“This (MBA) program has allowed me to upskill myself for better opportunities with my company and in the corporate world,” she said. “I’ve been able to apply much of what I’ve learned to the workplace. Every single professor I had was extremely professional and personable. They want you to win––they want you to succeed,” Meus said. 

As Meus reflects on her journey, she hopes her resilience will inspire her daughter to persevere through life’s challenges.

“I’m trying to set an example for my daughter and teach her there are hurdles that will come in your life,” she said. “However, with the right grounding in faith and your community lifting you up, there is nothing you cannot overcome.”