During this year’s commencement ceremony, George Mason University will honor a 20-year-old student with a posthumous degree.
Mari Tisera, who planned to graduate with a degree in government and international politics, died on June 6, 2023, after a battle with skin cancer.
This year, one of her best friends reached out to the university about honoring her at graduation.
When Tisera was 18, she noticed a birthmark on her foot. After getting the birthmark checked out, her melanoma diagnosis came as a shock.
We're making it easier for you to find stories that matter with our new newsletter — The 4Front. Sign up here and get news that is important for you to your inbox.
“As a mom, I don’t want anybody to experience that ... it was horrible and I was thinking why it was not me and not her,” Tisera’s mom Viviana Tisera said.
Despite Tisera’s cancer spreading, her parents said she kept up with her schoolwork and lived life to the fullest.
Tisera had dreams of being a human rights lawyer, interned on Capitol Hill and was proud of her Argentinian roots.
Local
Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia local news, events and information
She was cognizant of the sacrifices her parents made to give her and her brothers a better life, her mom and dad said.
“We, the immigrants, work hard and we try to be the example for them ... if my parents work hard, at least I need to do the same … she accomplished many things in a short time," her dad Gustavo Tisera added.
While Tisera will not physically be at graduation, her presence will be remembered.
“If she were here, she would say ‘Hey dad, look at that. I did it,’” Gustavo Tisera told News4.
Tisera’s dad is grateful that she will still be honored during this milestone.
“Thank you for everybody. Thank you for the university, thank you for the friends, for the memories, for the time you shared with my daughter. You made her happy because she was so happy to be there,” he added.
Tisera’s mom said that her daughter was a caring person with a free spirit.
“She was our princess. She was very friendly. She had friends everywhere. She was special,” Viviana Tisera said. “She always said, ‘Mami, when you work hard, you move mountains’ and I think it’s true,” she added.
Tisera’s parents showed News4 how they still carry a piece of her with them: tattoos of Tisera’s favorite animal, a blue butterfly.
The graduation ceremony will begin Friday at 7 p.m. This is the 32nd time George Mason University will confer a posthumous degree.
