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Miller Photography

Mariah Henry hadn’t seen Paul Turner since she was his middle school English teacher. But she made an impact on his life and he hasn’t forgotten.

A graduating senior of the Facing History School in Manhattan, Paul knows about challenging circumstances. After the death of his father in 2010, the 18-year-old and his mom struggled, shuttling between New York, Pennsylvania and Detroit until finally moving to a city homeless shelter two years ago.

Paul’s tenacity and his success in spite of the odds are the result of “how my parents raised me,” he said. “I never lost sight of that voice in my head telling me to keep going,” and be the best I could be.

Before he died, Paul’s dad spent months helping him prepare for Mott Hall middle school’s arduous application process. He never saw his son graduate. But the school not only gave Paul the solid education his father had expected, it also introduced him to Henry.

“She was there for me in my time of need,” Paul recalled. “She came to my father’s funeral. “

Henry didn’t see her support for her grieving student as unusual. “It’s part of my role as a teacher,” she said. “It seemed wrong not to go to the funeral.” She said she was surprised, happy and “very humbled” that Paul remembered.

Paul admitted he had trouble focusing on schoolwork after his father died. His mother, he said, “was always a solid person,” but she, too, was going through a tough time. Henry “was there for emotional support. I confided in her and she was very kind,” said Paul, who will study physics at Hamilton College in the fall.

“Paul would always bring humor to whatever we were working on,” Henry recalled. “His intellect and curiosity were apparent in middle school, and the fact that he overcame such obstacles really makes him remarkable.”