TheBakersfieldCalifornian.com

By the end of Friday, roughly 7,000 Kern High School District students will have diplomas in hand.

For many, four years of high school have been anything but easy. And for these four students in particular, obstacles that landed in their path made graduating just that much more of an accomplishment. Still, they did it, and some of them with honors.

Here are their stories.

MICHAEL MOORE (Golden Valley High School)

Michael Moore started his freshman year homeless. His father left Moore and his mother, and the two were evicted from their home shortly after.

For the next four years, Moore bounced around relatives' houses. Living situations were unpredictable, but his focus on school remained constant.

"I always wanted to make my life better instead of letting stuff get to me. Just stay positive," he said. "That work ethic was always instilled in me."

It wasn't easy, Moore admits. Money for school supplies and activities was hard to come by. Moore and his mother collected cans to pay for things.

His sisters, who took turns housing him, made sure he made it to class. That was a challenge considering the sisters had children of their own to take to school (he lived in the Golden Valley High School area but had to attend Centennial High School). He was late often to class, and was punished for tardiness.

He started attending Golden Valley his sophomore year, but still bounced around homes. He lived with his brother-in-law, until the in-law was arrested.

At school, however, he had tremendous support. Sam Rufus, the campus supervisor who grew into a father figure for Moore, was one of them.

Recognizing Moore's senior year would be expensive, Golden Valley staff donated money to Moore for supplies, eye glasses and exams, food and more.

It was clear Moore grew more confident with time, Rufus said.

"He could have gone in the wrong direction, but he had support," Rufus said. "I think he's gonna go a long way. He has the potential to do what he wants to do."

On Thursday, Moore stood on stage and spoke to his classmates about "establishing a tradition of excellence."

"Go out into the world," he said about his speech. "Put your name on the map."

Moore is graduating with a 4.2 GPA, and will attend Morehouse College to study computer engineering.

BRADFORD DILLON (South High School)

In 2005, Hurricane Katrina smashed through New Orleans, and the home of Bradford Dillon. Like thousands of others, Dillon and his family were evacuated and forced to settle in strange places across the nation.

Dillon and his father landed in Bakersfield.

Starting in 2006, Dillon attended Liberty High, living with an uncle who took them in. Then the two moved to the South High area. His new home -- Bakersfield -- took a bit to get used to, he said.

"I had to adjust to the variety of cultures," he said. "Here there's almost every ethnicity you can think of."

But Dillon concentrated on school, as did his father, Bradford Dillon Sr., who enrolled and still attends Cal State Bakersfield.

Dillon Jr. took the most difficult courses, and used swimming to help clear his head, he said. He was a stellar swimmer, making it to Valley championships in relay.

Dillon went back to New Orleans a few years ago. The houses were still empty and gutted. He hasn't been back since.

He's made the most out of the forced move, and will remain in California at least for a few more years for college.

Dillon has earned a 4.4 GPA, a No. 3 ranking at South High and scholarships from Project Best and Aera Energy. He will attend UC Davis, where he will study computer science.

Irene Ramey, his counselor at South High, called Dillon level-headed and laid-back.

"You wouldn't know he's been through everything that he's been through," Ramey said. "He doesn't focus on the negative."

For his father, he knows the move was hard on his son, but it was something he had to adapt to. Dillon Sr. said the "sky is the limit" for his son.

"I think it made him more a well-rounded person," Dillon Sr. said. "He's developing into a man."

MONIQUE MAHER (Foothill High School)

After returning to Bakersfield from a class trip to tour a college, Foothill High's Monique Maher learned something her parents had been hiding from her: they were losing their house.

The two had already lost their jobs. And as she returned from the trip, they were moving out.

There was nothing Maher could do except try to make them proud, she said.

"My mother said, 'You're a student. That's your job right now,'" Maher said.

She did her job well: a 4.5 GPA through the school's International Baccalaureate program, a winner of prestigious Dell and Gates Millennium scholarships, and a "community volunteer of the year" award. She will attend UCLA on a full-ride to study biology.

"I don't know how I got through (high school)," she said. "I say God first. I did everything I could. The rest was not in my control."

In fact, Maher said support from family, church members, friends and staff members at school helped her stay focused on school and not on financial problems.

In school she thrived. Outside it she served others. Through the Kinship Support Services Program, she and her family prepared and served meals for the needy. She coordinated a group for students so they can volunteer there, too.

Rebecca Farley, the Advancement Via Individual Determination co-coordinator at Foothill, said Farley has the "innate ability to see the bigger picture."

"She is a shining example for every student," said Farley, adding she uses Maher as an example for her junior students. "She does all she can do and then says, 'What else can I do?' And she stays positive the whole time."

JOHAM HUERTA (West High School)

Joham Huerta started at West High School in 2008 knowing hardly any English. You don't use the language much when you live in Mexico most of your life and work in the fields when you come to the United States.

Huerta was born in Long Beach but moved to Mexico as a toddler. Abandoned by both of his parents, his grandmother raised him and his two sisters. His grandmother, he said, made many sacrifices to make sure they could attend school (you pay for school in Mexico).

At 16, after realizing he was an American citizen, he started making his way here for the "educational opportunities and to help myself become a better person."

He began school in Baja California, but had to stop to work and support himself. He was essentially alone. He worked 12-hour days under the sun lifting pallets of apricots.

In 2008, he moved in with an uncle and aunt and enrolled at West, but several times left to work in the fields because family here could not support him. Finally in September that year, he was invited back to live in Bakersfield.

"I knew this was my chance to go back to school to finish high school," he said.

Huerta struggled with English while taking core classes like government, history and health. But Huerta knew he had to work hard.

"I didn't want to work in the fields all of my life," he said. "I have to put in work to get ahead."

Lucille Monroig-Serros, the coordinator for the English learner program at West, said Huerta is serious about education.

"The teachers all recognized his potential," she said. "He recognizes the value of education. This young man has an incredible sense of responsibility."

She added: "He's a true example of a student who had to overcome incredible barriers with determination, and by having the sense of hope he was able to do that."

Huerta recently received the Al Wright Memorial Scholarship. He will attend Bakersfield College in the fall.