Joyce Defauw left college in the 1950s, but this weekend — decades later — she’ll walk across the stage for her graduation at Northern Illinois University.The 90-year-old great-grandmother attended college for more than three years previously, but then stopped and started a family.”In the meantime, I met this gentleman who stole my heart and eye and we decided to get married,” she told WLS. “We had three children and then he passed away — I was a widow of five years.”After Defauw got remarried, she had six more children. Now, she’s a grandmother of 17.Going back to school was a lot different than her last experience, she said, specifically when it came to technology. Her adult children helped her tackle classes with a computer. “I did not have one,” Defauw said. “I never knew how to use one. They got me one. That’s how I went to class.”For anyone who thinks finishing their college degree is impossible, Defauw offers encouraging advice:”Don’t give up — even if you do quit, go back,” she said. “Just hang in there. Keep learning, keep giving thanks. It’s there for you, just go for it.”
Joyce Defauw left college in the 1950s, but this weekend — decades later — she’ll walk across the stage for her graduation at Northern Illinois University.
The 90-year-old great-grandmother attended college for more than three years previously, but then stopped and started a family.
“In the meantime, I met this gentleman who stole my heart and eye and we decided to get married,” she told WLS. “We had three children and then he passed away — I was a widow of five years.”
After Defauw got remarried, she had six more children. Now, she’s a grandmother of 17.
Going back to school was a lot different than her last experience, she said, specifically when it came to technology. Her adult children helped her tackle classes with a computer.
“I did not have one,” Defauw said. “I never knew how to use one. They got me one. That’s how I went to class.”
For anyone who thinks finishing their college degree is impossible, Defauw offers encouraging advice:
“Don’t give up — even if you do quit, go back,” she said. “Just hang in there. Keep learning, keep giving thanks. It’s there for you, just go for it.”
