Virginia State University News May 17, 2017 70-year-old graduates with honors The saying, It is never too late, applies to Virginia State University's graduate Daniel Moore, Jr. Moore, who is seventy, will receive his bachelor's degree in English with honors [cum laude] on Saturday, May 13 at 9 a.m. in the VSU Multipurpose Center. In 1964, Moore graduated from Armstrong High School in Richmond, Va. Over the course of his life, he served in the U.S. Navy, got married, had children and worked as a locomotive engineer in Richmond. In 2013, he enrolled at Virginia State University because he has always wanted to fulfill his dream, which was to earn a college degree. "I have always stressed the importance of a college education to my children as well as my grandchildren," Moore said. "After supporting two of my children and two of my great-grandchildren with earning their bachelor's and/or master's degree, my family told me it was time for me to earn my college degree." Moore and his wife, Sandra, are the proud parents of three children, six grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. Moore and his wife will celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary on October 28, 2017. When asked how he felt to be in classes with students who were around the same age of his grandchildren, Moore, who has been doing yoga for the past eight years, chuckled. "My fellow classmates encouraged me just as much as I encouraged them," said Moore, with the look of a father who wants his children to be successful. What advice does Moore have for others who may think it's too late to go college? "I know it's a cliché' but if you can believe it, you can achieve," Moore expressed with such conviction. "An education can empower a person so much. It truly has empowered me. There's a quote by George Bernard Shaw that I live by... "I am of the opinion that my life belongs to the community, and as long as I live, it is my privilege to do for it whatever I can. I want to be thoroughly used up when I die, for the harder I work, the more I live. Life is no 'brief candle' to me. It is a sort of splendid torch which I have got hold of for a moment, and I want to make it burn as brightly as possible before handing it on to the future generations." After graduation, Moore plans to make sure his torch continues to burn bright by becoming an author and serve the scholarly needs of his community. "I have always had a thirst for writing," Moore shared. "I plan to write a memoir which will focus on my years working on the railroad and my wonderful time at Virginia State University." SANDRA M. PHOENIX HBCU Library Alliance Executive Director Atlanta University Center Robert W. Woodruff Library 111 James P. Brawley Drive SW Atlanta, GA 30314 404-978-2118 (office) 404-702-5854 (cell) http://www.hbculibraries.org/ sphoenix@hbculibraries.org<mailto:sphoenix@hbculibraries.org<mailto:sphoenix@hbculibraries.org%3cmailto:sphoenix@hbculibraries.org>> Honor the ancestors, honor the children. Follow us on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hbculibraryalliance1/ and Twitter https://twitter.com/HBCULibAlliance Check out "PULSE!" The HBCU Library Alliance's News Source! - https://hbculibraryalliance.wordpress.com/