90-year-old Mississippi woman Ellouise Lewis recently earned an honorary GED, achieving her lifelong dream.
According to WLOX, Lewis received her honorary GED certificate at a Gulfport Care Center graduation ceremony on Sept. 21.
“I never did get a chance to graduate until this day,” she told the news outlet.
Lewis reportedly accomplished her longtime goal after dropping out of tenth grade eight decades ago. The Gulfport Care Center staff worked to make her dream come to fruition after saying she wished she had finished high school.
“When they told me here that I could get my GED, I was happy about it. I’m still happy,” she said while crying. “Excuse me, because this makes me happy to know that I can do this.”
Lewis reportedly told Activity Director Lisa Perdue about her desire to finish high school, which prompted Perdue to make her wish come alive. The 90-year-old expressed that she wanted it while reflecting on her life journey.
“It’s a blessing [to my coworkers and to me] to be able to make this happen,” Perdue said to WLOX. She reportedly reached out to Christian-based learning center in Gulfport, Wells of SouthGate, for assistance. As such, Lewis became SouthGate’s first-ever recipient after she passed a mock test administered by the organization.
“It was just great to be involved with this,” Leonard Martin, who presented the certificate, said.
Despite not being an official GED, the honorary GED presented to the elderly woman proves that she was determined to finish the SouthGate course.
“She’s the first. She’s pivotal,” her son Greg said. “So, hopefully, it will open doors for others to follow in her footsteps.”
As News Onyx previously reported, the nation’s elderly community has been making headlines for various milestones as of late. One includes Black Vietnam war veteran Timothy Brown, who graduated from HBCU South Carolina State University (SCSU) at 77 years old.
