Aren Rust

When I first enrolled at Lone Star College–Montgomery in September of 2003, I was filled with anticipation and excitement to finally be taking my first step towards earning a college degree. Right from the beginning I found much enjoyment and satisfaction in the ritual of attending class, meeting new people and being part of an academic environment. Continuing to move forward with my education has become even more important to me since a progressive bone disease, that I was diagnosed with in April of 2003, took a debilitating turn earlier this year. The opportunity to take online distance courses through Lone Star College–Montgomery has proved to be an invaluable outlet for me to work towards my degree while at the same time providing stimulating and healthy interaction with other students and my professors, even though I am unable to attend class in person.

The last two semesters at Lone Star College–Montgomery I have had to stop taking on campus classes entirely and rely on LSC-Online courses due to my condition. There has been so much in my life that has been hard to cope with in the last year and so many things that I have had to give up, everyday when I open my text books, I am reminded how fortunate I am that I can still go to college. School has literally become my major focus in life, helping to distract me from the difficulties I am going through. I have even been accepted to Phi Theta Kappa and the Honor Society and, although the extent to which I can participate is limited, they do provide me another avenue to communicate and interact with peers on a day-to-day basis that I would not have otherwise.

In March of this year, my treatment was transferred to the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in downtown Houston; within days of meeting my new doctors, I was informed that I was being put on temporary disability. Despite reassurances that I would be able to receive a monthly income through social security, I was convinced that my education would have to end if I did not have some type of employment to carry me through the six-month waiting period required in order to collect disability benefits. Reaching out on a limb, I decided to meet with a financial advisor at Lone Star College–Montgomery in an attempt to try and find a way to stall what I was sure and inevitable. Armed with compassion that never wavered and a desire to help that was evident, two student counselors and a financial advisor kept in touch with me for the next two months as they sought a way to help. Their dedication to my plight resulted in a solution that allowed me to not only continue on with my studies during the approaching fall semester, but also to participate in the summer term as well.

In conclusion, I am grateful that all of the hard work that I have put into college to maintain a 4.0 GPA does not have to stop or be interrupted due to the circumstances currently in my life. I feel that my story is a good example of someone who has the dedication and desire to excel in college but lacks the financial means and physical ability to keep alive the dream of graduating. Being a student at Lone Star College–Montgomery is the only thing that I have in my life right now that brings to me a sense of purpose and makes me feel that I am still able to accomplish some of my goals, two positive things I really need. Without financial assistance and access to the distance-learning program my endeavors would be halted, thus Lone Star College–Montgomery continues to play a crucial role in my life, helping to keep the candle of hope burning bright within me.