Five Memphis students battling sickle cell disease receive scholarship in honor of Interim Superintendent Williams’ mother

Interim Memphis-Shelby County Schools Superintendent Toni Williams says her mother Shirley Yvette Green was a strong woman and a warrior as she battled sickle cell disease.Williams says her mother told her the pain from the disease was like a stabbing sensation all over her body. Despite that, Williams says her mother would often hide her struggles so others wouldn’t worry.“As a sickle warrior, you’re born into this life. It’s a life that gives you many limitations. A life where at any moment, a sickle cell crisis can happen,” said Williams.