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For many people, the “golden years” are a time to slow down
and recall past achievements. Nola Ochs—a Guinness record holder as the world's
oldest college graduate at the age of 95—saw age as an opportunity to take on
new challenges and satisfy unfulfilled goals.
Born in 1911 in Illinois, Nola always loved learning. She
was a good student who graduated from high school in 1929 and began college via
correspondence course（函授课程）from Fort Hays State University in Kansas. After getting the
degree of the college, she taught in county schools for four years before
marrying her husband, Vernon Ochs.
Soon, the realities of farming stopped any thoughts of
furthering her education, though Nola lived a good, full life on the farm,
raising four sons. She always yearned to learn more about the world she lived
in, but not until after Vernon died in 1972, did Nola consider resuming
her formal education.
“I just thought something off the farm would be fun,” Nola
explained. “Really, I had no thought of ever graduating. For 10 years, I just
took classes that were of interest to me, mostly history and composition. And
then one of the professors came to me and told me if I would take college
algebra, I would have enough credit hours to graduate. And I finally made it.”
For most people, graduating at the age of 95 with a 3.7 GPA
might be enough of an accomplishment, but not for Nola. In May 2010, at the age
of 98, Nola Ochs received her master's degree, making her the oldest person to
receive that distinction.
By the time Nola
passed away in 2016, at the incredible age of 105, she had achieved her goal of
writing a book about her life experiences. At one point in the process, when
asked for her life advice, she said, “Buy the plane ticket!” She meant that
people should take advantage of life's opportunities and not wait until
tomorrow.
