1. I have found that there is one thing that we can count on, life is
unpredictable. I was an excellent student in high school and college. When I
completed college I was hired by a company with a great reputation and was paid
a good salary. I met a wonderful man that I married. When I got pregnant we
agreed that I would work only part time so that I could spend more time at home
with the baby. Shortly after our first child was a year old I got pregnant
again. We were thrilled about having a second child. Shortly after the birth of
our second child my husband was killed in a car accident. I was left to single
parent two children with limited resources.
As the children aged we managed to get along with the money I made. I was not
able to put extra time into my career to get into the higher salary bracket
because I am in a competitive field. My children had only one parent I was not
going to spend all my time developing a career. As my oldest reached the age
where he was looking into colleges I began to panic about funding. I spoke to
the high school guidance counselor and was told about the federal student loans
programs. The counselor said there were many different scholarships available
for different career choices. The federal student loans site was a great place
to research many different types of financial aide that many students do not
realize are available. The counselor was aware of our family history and knew
that I was overwhelmed with parenting and my career. He offered to do some
research with my son regarding federal student loans. I was very grateful to him
for taking the time and interest in my son’s education.
My son came home with several different forms to fill out for financial aide. He
told me that he and the counselor had found a scholarship through the federal
student loans programs that he may qualify for. The school had to make a
recommendation on his behalf and the counselor was willing to do this. After
completing all the paper work and waiting several weeks my son was interviewed
for the scholarship. After waiting several more weeks we were informed that he
was granted the scholarship. As long as he maintains a B grade point average he
will get his tuition paid for. I was so thankful to the counselor for suggesting
the federal student loans programs. Having the tuition taken care of is a great
burden off of me and my son. I know that some how in the future we will be able
to give back in some way for the generous scholarship. It makes me feel that I
am entering a more positive time in life.