Nursing home resident graduates from high school at 92

July 20--LAKE GENEVA -- Smiling from ear to ear, Dorothy Leiss clutched her new high school diploma to her chest Thursday.

Leiss, 92, never actually graduated from high school. She joined the workforce right after eighth grade to help support her family.

But on Thursday, she became a graduate at a makeshift ceremony with friends and family at Geneva Lake Manor, the nursing and rehabilitation center she calls home.

The event was a joint effort by the center and the community, sparked after an employee heard how much Leiss wished she could have donned a cap and gown 75 years ago, when she was supposed to graduate.

Diane Morrison got to know Leiss when she began working at the center in 2012. She said she helped organize the graduation because she knew how much it would mean to Leiss, who turns 93 next month.

"From my very first day, we bonded instantly," Morrison said. "Over the years, we have spent hours together sharing stories, and the topic that she never got to go to or graduate from high school would come up frequently, and she had so much remorse over it. It brought tears to my eyes."

Leiss might be short in stature, but her personality is enormous. It made her successful in a variety of fields, including packaging and real estate, and she was heavily involved in the community in her younger years.

At her graduation, that personality was easy to see.

Her eyes lit up as she smiled and gave hugs, kisses or handshakes--sometimes all three--to those who attended. She made jokes and reminisced about her life and her approaching birthday. As people left, she reminded them to have a wonderful life.

"She is very intriguing," Morrison said. "Her whole life is a story waiting to be told, and we love listening to her tell it."

Morrison approached Lake Geneva School District officials for help, and they agreed to present an honorary diploma to Leiss.

Officials who attended Thursday's ceremony included Superintendent Jim Gottinger, school board President Patrick Sherman and state Sen. Steve Nass, R-La Grange. They all had positive things to say about the newest graduate of Lake Geneva Badger High School.

"We are very proud of Dorothy and her accomplishments," Gottinger said.

Sherman and Nass both said Leiss deserves the diploma even if she never attended high school.

"We thought this was very deserved," Sherman said. "You are part of the Greatest Generation. You have been a lifelong learner."

Nass echoed that thought.

"Education is lifelong. It's not when you do something, it is what you do. Thank you for all of your contributions to the community," he said.

Friends and family shared cake, memories and plenty of smiles. And while graduation day arrived more than seven decades late, it was a day that clearly will be treasured.

"My life has been a wonderful thing," Leiss said. "I am very grateful, and I think this is fantastic. I never thought this day would come, but here I am. I did it."

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