A centenarian from West Virginia was finally able to fulfill his life-long dream of earning a high school diploma.
At the age of 101, Merrill Pittman Cooper was recently awarded an honorary diploma from the school he attended as a teenager, according to a press release from Jefferson County School.
Cooper was a student at Storer College, which was once a high school, from 1934 to 1938. During that time, he studied Latin, biology, history, English, and mathematics.
He planned to graduate and earn a college education; however, unforeseen circumstances caused Cooper to move out of state.
While Cooper was a senior in high school, he relocated with his mother to Pennsylvania. He lived in Philadelphia for the next 50 years where he had a successful career in transportation and rose to the position of union vice president.
In 2018, Cooper visited the Storer College campus, located in Harpers Ferry, WV. He reflected on his time spent there, wishing that he had completed his high school diploma.
“As time went on, I thought it was probably too late, so I put it behind me and made the best of the situation,” Cooper told the Washington Post.
“I got so involved in working and making a living that my dreams went out the window,” he added.
Now, 84 years later, joint efforts by multiple organizations were arranged to honor Cooper’s education and work beyond school.
The Jefferson County Schools, Harpers Ferry National Historical Park, Storer College National Alumni Association, West Virginia Department of Education, and Cooper’s family held a graduation ceremony for Cooper on March 19.
“I can’t think of a happier day,” said Cooper. “Even though it took me a while, I’m really happy to finally have it.”
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