I got the JW "bug" as a teenager. Witnesses called at our door when I was nearly 11. My parents are deaf and I was the oldest hearing child, the default interpreter for them in that era before relay services and professional interpreters. They had no interest in JWs, but it started to spark an interest in me. My parents let me obtain the magazines and books for awhile, but then they got alarmed as I got more deeply involved. By the time I was 13, I was sneaking out of the house to go door to door and I'd go over to Witnesses' homes to study. I used to ride my bicycle to Sunday meetings (and not tell my parents where I was going). Witness parents would point to me as an example for their children. Eventually, my parents relented, but they were never happy about my association with JWs other than it kept me out of trouble.
I had been a star pupil in school before this, but now my energies were directed towards the Witness religion. I told my guidance counselor in high school that I would not be pursuing college because I was planning to be a pioneer. I vividly remember her response: "You owe it to God and the Church to go to college!" I shared that at a Service Meeting and the congregation roared! In 1973, I went to Bethel. I remember reading somewhere where Bethel service was compared to a college education and I also remember that once I got there it did not feel like that at all. Bethel was all about work and theocratic politics.
I left Bethel in 1976 with an "honorable discharge" and went back to the local congregation, got married and tried to get on with life. But, I had no training for anything. So, I worked at various jobs and eventually worked in a book bindery in Arizona for many years. I woke up about JWs in 1980, but it took me a few years to get past the JW stage of my life. I started thinking about beginning college in the late 80s, but it seemed an insurmountable challenge. So, my wife (who eventually left the JWs herself later) and I settled down to raising our two children.
We eventually moved to a more rural area and I saw an advertisement in the paper that the local school district needed a sign language interpreter. I got hired because of my background (despite no official training) and started working in education as an aide to deaf and hard of hearing children. I ended up shadowing my own children in the public schools (which they hated, of course!) I always pushed my kids to excel in school and to make college part of their plans. ("Don't make the same mistake I did!" I told them.) As we helped our son with the process of applying for college and financial aid, the mystery and fear of how to start at college began to disappear for me. At the same time, a fellow interpreter in his mid 20s was also thinking about going back to college. I kept encouraging him like I had my son and he asked me, "When are YOU going to go to college?" I told him, that I was too old--I'm in my early 50s. He said, "That's no excuse. Go for it." That day it just clicked and I called the local community college and started the process.
One of the teachers at the school I worked with told me about a scholarship opportunity and I put in for it. I was startled to receive a $1000 scholarship. With that and the financial aid I received, my first year's tuition and books was basically covered. So, I began classes during the summer term of 2007. I seemed like a dream come true. I've always enjoyed reading and studying and here I was doing something I had wished I'd done years earlier. Still, it was no picnic! I struggled with Biology and Math, but I was able to keep up a good grade point average. I've stayed working full time (can't go without insurance for my family!) and took evening and weekend classes. Still, I also had to work part time on another job to make ends meet.
Early this year, I applied for the full range of scholarships available. (I had missed the window for most of these my first year because I had made my decision to start classes too late.) I received notification of two scholarships, totaling $1,750. Again, that meant that my tuition and books would be covered for this next year. Still, I began to worry about what would I do when I finish at the community college and need to transfer to a university. The costs are greater there and I may have to change my work schedule to attend some classes in the field I want to go after. I had thought all the scholarships had been awarded, but last night I got the surprise of my life. I received an email notification to find out that I had received an additional $5,000 scholarship for next year. That means that much more than my tuition and books are covered...this will help cover my living expenses too. The best part is that this scholarship is automatically renewable, which means that as long as I stay full time in school and "make satisfactory progress" in my classes, the scholarship will be renewed until I will graduate from the university. This means I can definitely quit my second job and will have less worries about finances when I transfer to the university. If I enter a graduate program afterwards, that will take more money, but that's about 3 years down the road. This will help take care of me until then.
So, even though the WT may have screwed up your teen-age years and robbed you of educational opportunities, it's not too late. Even if you're in your 50s there is support available for non-traditional students to begin their secondary education. I wasted too many years telling myself that I'd blown my chances and that it'd be foolish to try now.
Do you wish you'd gone to college? Do you think about the "what ifs"? Let go of your anger and make that call to the local community college. If you've never done any college, you'll probably start with a placement test. After that, you can meet with a counselor and find out what options you have. And there are other ways to go than just the local college. The point is, DO SOMETHING! It may sound trite, but it's true: It's never too late.