Westbury High School teacher Naomi Parisette wakes up every morning at 4:00 a.m., commutes an hour to her classroom, and is one of the first teachers in the building each day.
For 13 years she led the school’s National Student Council which, under her guidance, raised thousands of dollars for Diaspora Girls’ Senior High School in Ghana to build a water well, bus shelter and classroom pavilion; install running toilets; purchase jerseys for the girls’ soccer team; and provide feminine hygiene products for students.
Because of her global philanthropy, Parisette was recently honored by Chick-fil-A Leader Academy as one of 10 outstanding educators in the nation who model leadership to their students by showing them what it looks like “to selflessly serve their communities.”
But outside of making a difference in classrooms across the world, Parisette has always had another dream.
“I love teaching and my kids,” said Parisette, a member of the Westbury Teachers Association. “But there was something in me since I was a teenager that, for years, had been pushed aside.”
Growing up, Parisette says she covered her bedroom walls with clippings from fashion magazines and dreamed of sporting the designer threads on a runway. In reality, she remembers wearing hand-me downs and being bullied at school for her looks and socioeconomic status. At her mother’s behest, after high school Parisette ended up pursuing a college degree rather than a modeling career.
Life got busy and her dream was mostly forgotten – until Parisette says a medical emergency forced her to reevaluate her life’s path thus far.
“I was in pain every single day and forced to be on a liquid diet that made me lose 110 pounds,” she explained. “During one of my hospitalizations, I thought I was going to die, and I was laying in the hospital bed thinking ‘this is it.’ But something clicked in my head, and I knew I wanted to do so much more with my life.”
On the road to recovery, Parisette kept teaching but also started kayaking, rock climbing – even skydiving. “I was finally doing all the things that I had always wanted to try,” she said.
With her renewed enthusiasm for life, Parisette hopped on a plane to the Bahamas for a casting call and was signed by an agency. For the last two years, she’s been a freelance model and has walked in New York, Los Angeles and Miami Fashion weeks; been photographed for 10 fashion magazines; and recently appeared in Vogue Vienna.
Now a couple nights a week after school, Parisette heads to castings, practices and shows in New York City. She says some dreams are worth chasing no matter how much time has gone by.
“I’m 48 years old finally pursuing my dream that I had from when I was 16,” Parisette said. “Even though I’m exhausted, I’m energized and I’m happy. I hope I’m teaching my daughter and my students that they can go after their goals, too.”