Jennifer Hoggan stands on the cool sand of Coronado Beach, waves crashing in the distance. She smiles at the camera, proudly holding what she’s dreamed of for 38 years – her diploma.

“It feels like a puzzle piece going into place,” she says.

Jennifer’s connection with Union began in the winter of 2017 when Jane Skidmore and her mother Jane Minton Blair happened to attend the Methodist church in Coronado, California, where Jennifer’s husband is a minister. Later, Union’s online options, affordability, and supportive community turned out to be just what Jennifer needed to make her dream come true.

In 1984, Jennifer began her studies at California State University, Long Beach. She was a student of Comparative Literature but was not able to complete her degree at that time. “I didn’t have my act together,” she says.

As time went on, Jennifer lived a full life as a mother, wife, volunteer, and employee of various jobs. Still, she “always felt that lack” regarding her education. When she filled out job applications or heard people talking about where they got their degree, she says she “felt a little bad inside” and was determined to complete her bachelor’s, too.

By 2019, Jennifer’s three children were nearly grown, and the time to focus on her studies had come.

“I put my family first for a long time, and that was good,” she says, “but as my kids became older and were leaving the nest, it became easier for me to think about going back to school and make it happen.”

Jennifer decided to pursue substance use counseling. She knew there was a great need, others saw her potential as a counselor, and she learned that in California, the path to licensure only required an undergraduate degree, rather than an additional master’s. She enrolled in San Diego Community College with a clear goal in sight.

Then, the pandemic happened. Like everyone, Jennifer experienced heavy emotions and massive changes in her day-to-day life. Her classes suddenly shifted to online. Her youngest son, who was in college himself, came home because his dorm closed. Her husband’s work was constantly in flux. “It was just a tough time for the whole country,” she remembers.

Still, Jennifer persevered. She realized that as an older student, she had developed life skills that helped her navigate this new world and succeed in an online environment. She completed her Associate of Science and Associate of Arts degrees in 2020, along with a certificate in Alcohol and Other Drug Studies.

Now she was ready for the next step. When Jennifer searched for “affordable online degrees in addiction counseling,” she was excited to see Union College come up second on the list. She was already familiar with Union’s welcoming community and solid track record. “It felt like things just kept falling into place,” she says.

The synchronicity began one Sunday in 2017. Like any other Sunday, Jennifer’s husband, the Rev. Robert Fuesler, asked his Coronado congregation if anyone was visiting from out of town. When Jennifer heard that two women were in from Kentucky, she made her way down the aisle to them during the passing of the peace. She welcomed them and explained that her daughter Abigail wanted to go to a college in Kentucky and that they would be visiting it soon.

The visitors asked which school, and Jennifer said it was a small one they had probably never heard of. When it turned out to be Union, Jane Skidmore remembers that she and her mother squealed. “I live across the street from Union!” Skidmore told Jennifer.

Skidmore has served on Union’s Board of Trustees for many years and is currently the Vice Chair. Her mother, Jane Minton Blair, has been called Union’s best ambassador and “The First Lady of Union” in recognition of her decades of service and generous philanthropic support.

The two mother-daughter pairs met up for coffee after the service, and Jennifer and Jane Skidmore struck up a friendship that has lasted to this day. Skidmore invited Jennifer and Abigail to stay with her when they visited Union that spring, and Jennifer accepted. She says “Jane’s absolutely gracious demeanor” won her over, and that she is grateful she got to spend time with Blair on that visit before she passed the following year.

“I believe we're soul sisters,” Skidmore says of Jennifer.