Life update: Matthew Graduated From University!

I am so proud of my husband Matthew. He just graduated this weekend with a degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Bridgeport! Through many obstacles, Matthew never lost his grit and never stopped working towards his dream. He took a few breaks along the way due to career changes, financial situations and family hardships. But he never once gave up. This past Saturday, Matthew’s father and I sat in the front row of the audience and clapped for Matthew while his family and friends watched virtually as he crossed the stage to accept his diploma. We could not have been more proud.

When I first started dating Matthew in 2008, he was taking community college classes in central New York. He had first started at the University of Buffalo at the age of seventeen and was miraculously paying for it all by himself with no family help or financial aid while working full time. That is an incredible responsibility for a teenager younger than his peers. Naturally, it was impossible to keep up and it did not work out. Unfortunately, students under a certain age cannot accept any student loans without a guardian co-signing and he did not have that. But he was determined to make it happen one day.

Throughout the time I was in college at Cazenovia, Matthew was taking classes on and off between working a full time night shift at Crucible Steel Mill in Syracuse. After I graduated we moved to Maryland together where he did an apprenticeship at a local community college and eventually decided to go for engineering again at another college. His original goal was to be a bridge engineer and he went into mechanical engineering, but he was working full time as an electrician and it shaped his path towards electrical engineering instead. Matthew had found his passion.

After a few years we ended up moving to northern Connecticut shortly, which put us between our two families and he started taking community college courses while he applied to UCONN. But UCONN wasn’t meant to be. The University of Bridgeport had an electrical engineering program that was close to his new job and my new job in the western side of the state. We made the big move once again and he started taking full-time classes again, this time completing his degree in Electrical Engineering while paying for classes himself without taking out student loans.

Through all that time, Matthew remained am incredible boyfriend (now husband), friend, son, brother, and uncle.

We kept living life and went on many adventures over weekends, holidays, and summer breaks.

And during these years we also got engaged and paid for our own wedding, which took place on June 16, 2018. He had just finished his finals for the semester a few weeks before. We spent three weeks on our honeymoon to France, Italy, and Greece.

Thinking about his epic journey to get to this point will always impress me. He worked so hard to put himself through college, for many years while working the night shift and doing dangerous jobs while taking classes during the day. And he still managed to build an incredible life inside and outside of university.

This past semester was a big one. Matthew completed his senior project with an A. His family, friends, and I are all so proud. We knew he would keep his promise to himself. Matthew hopes to one day make a difference in the world. He is thinking that he will start making a positive impact by going into renewable energy. Matthew, I know you will change the world. You already have.

I am so thankful that Matthew was able to celebrate this moment with his classmates and the class of 2021. He deserves it more than anyone I know.