P.E.O. PROGRAM FOR CONTINUING EDUCATION | PCE
Written in the Stars of Our
by Donna Corbin, P.E.O. Program for Continuing Education Board of Trustees
IT ALL BEGAN WHEN MILLIE MUSSON, PROGRAM FOR CONTINUING EDUCATION (PCE) CHAIR FOR ARIZONA STATE CHAPTER, recommended to Chapter AW, Tucson, that it might find PCE candidates through Job Path, a local non-profit organization that provides financial support and guidance to students attending Pima Community College. That suggestion was eagerly taken up by Chapter AW’s PCE chair, Barbara Richardson, who shortly afterward received word of Tracy Berry, a student enrolled in the four-semester dental hygienist program at the college. Tracy began pursuing the degree nearly 30 years earlier but put her aspirations aside because her husband vehemently opposed them. She began a business in cosmetology instead, had three children and endured a marriage that ultimately resulted in divorce and her husband’s imprisonment.
With spirit and determination, Tracy shared with Chapter AW’s committee her life story, the physical demands of her work as a cosmetologist, and her goal to become a dental hygienist. Tracy appeared eligible for a PCE grant, and the chapter’s agreement to sponsor Tracy was readily gained. Outside of the committee’s formal interview, in a personal conversation with Barbara, Tracy began to ask a question, but abruptly stopped. Barbara encouraged her to continue, saying, “Whatever it is, it’s fine to talk about it.” Tracy then shared that her daughter, Karlie Dorris, was enrolled in the Medical Laboratory Technology program at North Idaho College and that both Tracy and her daughter would graduate in May 2023. Tracy told Barbara that she had mentioned to Karlie that she was being sponsored for a PCE grant, and that Karlie had replied, “I wish there was something like that I could apply for.” Excited about the possibility of yet another PCE candidate, Barbara reached out to a P.E.O. sister from Idaho who was wintering in Tucson and attended Chapter AW’s meetings. That sister, who asked to remain anonymous, provided Karlie’s name and contact information to the PCE chair for Chapter CL, Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. PCE Chair Cheryl Cunnington took it from there, resulting in Chapter CL sponsoring Karlie for a PCE grant. Early on the morning of November 24, 2021, Karlie received word that she had been awarded a PCE grant
to support her first semester. She called her mother multiple times until late afternoon when Tracy at last had a chance to return her call and hear Karlie’s excitement. When Tracy arrived home about 40 minutes later, she found that she, too, had received a grant. She immediately called Karlie and said, “I’m doing a happy dance!” Tracy shared the news of her own PCE grant, Karlie replied, “I’m doing a happy dance, too!” Tracy’s PCE grant allowed her to purchase specialized glasses (“loupes”) to use in clinicals and eased the burden of purchasing books, but beyond the personal impact, Tracy said, “What you did for my daughter just moved
me, melted my heart. I can’t afford to pay for her education. It filled my heart just to get that phone call from her.
“What you did for my daughter just moved me, melted my heart. I can’t afford to pay for her education. It filled my heart just to get that phone call from her. You are changing people’s lives.” –TRACY BERRY, PCE RECIPIENT
You are changing people’s lives.” Was it coincidence that a mother and daughter—sponsored individually by chapters 1,500 miles apart—were each awarded PCE grants and each notified on the same day? Some may say it was, but we P.E.O.s believe it was a story written in the stars of our Sisterhood; one that began in the heart of a loving mother, was developed by caring sisters, and whose happy ending was written by the Program for Continuing Education.
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May–June 2022 | THE P.E.O. RECORD
WWW.PEOINTERNATIONAL.ORG
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