Joyce DeFauw, later Joyce Viola Kane, enrolled as a freshman at Northern Illinois University in 1951, intending to major in home economics.
DeFauw told sources on Thursday that her plans changed when she met a man at church who won her heart.
“I attended school for three and a half years, but after I met him, I decided to leave.” stated DeFauw.
Don Freeman Sr. was a one-of-a-kind person. Before Freeman’s death, the couple had three children and married in 1955. She has been a widow for about five years since his death.
DeFauw eventually married her deceased second husband, Roy DeFauw. They had six children in total, including two sets of twins.
Her family has grown over the years, and she now has 24 great-grandchildren to go along with her 17 grandchildren.
In 2019, DeFauw expressed interest in the college curriculum she had left behind (fast forward to that year).
She explained that her children pushed her to return after she regretted not finishing school. As a result, she reapplied to Northern Illinois and began classes again.
Jenna Dooley, one of DeFauw’s 17 grandchildren and an NIU alumna, told sources that when DeFauw decided to return, it was more about the “why not” than the “why.”
Dooley recalled going to her grandmother’s farmhouse as a child, where DeFauw was always baking or cooking.
DeFauw used to teach Sunday school. According to Dooley, she has always enjoyed learning and teaching.
According to Dooley, when we called the school to inquire about a former enrolment, they were taken aback to learn that we were looking for a child from the 1950s.
DeFauw, on the other hand, discovered that things were very different this time.
Rather than walking to campus, she attended class from her retirement home, sitting in front of a computer screen.
DeFauw remarked, “It was my first computer, and my kids had to teach me how to use it.”
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Dooley stated that her uncle Don, DeFauw’s eldest son, helped her set up the computer, get a camera, and teach her how to use her school email.
Dooley said she was thankful for the computer in 2020 when the Covid-19 pandemic began. “It worked out extremely well that she was already set up online,” she said.
Dooley added that she couldn’t have visitors because she was living alone at the time. She became frustrated at times, but I kept assuring her that everything was just a part of the process. She added.
“At times, I considered giving up, but I refrained,” stated DeFauw. She claimed she received much support from her family, friends, and school.
DeFauw benefited greatly from Judy Santacaterina, director of bachelor general studies. Santacaterina is appreciated by the entire family, according to Dooley, for taking on the responsibility of assisting her grandmother in obtaining her degree.
DeFauw took one class per semester, even during the summer. Dooley describes her as having a regimen and being very structured. She wanted to continue taking classes to keep that pattern going.
Three years later, she will don the cap and gown and graduate with a Bachelor of General Studies degree this weekend.
DeFauw is grateful for the opportunity to return to school and finish her degree. It’s satisfying to finish a project you’ve started, she said.
She advised anyone who might be in a similar situation not to give up. “I know it can be difficult, but life has its ups and downs,” she explained.
She has a talent for teaching and learning, so being able to celebrate this is the icing on the cake. Dooley stated.
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