It’s bittersweet.
In one day, the McKenzie family will gain their college degrees, walk the stage together and say goodbye to their time at the University of Idaho. Jon McKenzie will never get this day back.
Jon decided at 44-years-old to finish his bachelor’s degree in Interdisciplinary Studies. He didn’t realize that returning to college would result in him graduating at the exact same time as his two children, Carson, 22, and MacKara, 21. But the stars seemed to align for this family. On May 11, Jon, Carson and MacKara will all be awarded their bachelor’s degrees from UI.
“You are never too old to finish what you start. Whatever you do, don’t quit trying,” Jon said. “I don’t regret putting my education to the backburner. That was my decision, and I hope that it was a better situation for the kids. The proof is in the pudding. They are both graduating together. They are both realizing their dreams and aspirations.”
When Jon was first enrolled in college over 20 years ago, his son Carson was born with a congenital heart defect which caused him to need open heart surgery at three days old. Because of this, Jon decided that his education could wait. He would start working in construction to care for the health and well-being of his family.
In 2012, Jon enrolled at North Idaho College, but again, he placed his education to the side in order to provide for his family.
“To say that the kids’ lives have been hunky dory, peachy keen and sunshine and rainbows would be a total farce,” Jon said. “They have gone through some of the most agonizing things in life that we have all walked through together. There have been so many awful things we have had to endure together, but we did it together.”
Resilience, determination, and grit—or what the McKenzie’s describe as stubbornness—have become the anthem of their lives. Trials crept in at every corner to stop Jon from gaining his degree while simultaneously raising a family. Carson didn’t want to go to college after the anxiety the pandemic poured over his family. MacKara thought she would drop out of college after becoming pregnant in her freshman year.
It seemed like the McKenzie’s futures were ones without diplomas. But stubbornness pushed them to the finish line.
“I’m not doing this to make anyone proud, to be honest with you,” Carson said. “I wanted to make myself proud because I wanted to show myself I could do it, even if I didn’t want to.”
“I had the option of following a completely different route and quitting school and just focusing on being a mom,” MacKara said.
She said that her dad pushed her from a young age to get her degree immediately after high school. He pushed his kids to pursue a college degree from a traditional standpoint. That lesson motivated both Carson and MacKara to gain their degrees as soon as possible.
Carson will graduate with a degree in Film and Television and MacKara will graduate with degrees in Psychology and Communication. Carson is planning to move to Atlanta in the coming months to begin work in the film industry. MacKara is looking to continue her education with a master’s degree in psychology. She hopes to one day open her own counseling practice.
Jon applied to UI’s law school. He repeated over and over that graduating with a college degree is proof of the family’s determination, but it isn’t their end goal. He is even prouder that his kids have dreams of making names for themselves in the world.
“What’s next? That’s what life is all about. What’s coming down the pipe? What can we plan for?” Jon said. “Yes, graduation is coming, but what’s next.”
“Constantly push yourself, and for those things you think you’ll never be able to accomplish, shoot for the stars. Shoot for it. Even if you don’t hit the stars, maybe you’ll fall on the moon. Who knows?”
Joanna Hayes can be reached at [email protected]