After having a dangerous allergic reaction to some medication, JoAnn Billiter had a seizure, fell and suffered injures to her face while at the Wal-Mart on Miller Lane.
Her face took about a month to heal, but for this stay at home mother, she said it felt like forever.
“At one point the doctors thought that seizures were going to be a part of my everyday life,“ Billiter said. “Initially, the doctors didn’t think I would be able to drive and I thought I am going to be very dependent.”
That worried her, she said, because growing up she was always independent. It was this accident that prompted her desire to attend Sinclair Community College. Her face had healed by then and being a stay at home mother was no longer something she wanted to be.
But she still faces obstacles.
For eight years, Billiter said she has been in an up and down struggle with her education. Never fully committing, she said because being a mother of five and working full-time is hard.
“College was not a priority at the time,” she said. “But I decided to go back to school, not with the intentions of getting a degree, it was more for something to do. And then once I got here, I really loved it and I decided I was going to finish this time.”
She said she plans to graduate over the summer if all of her classes are offered, thus fulfilling her goal of getting her Communication degree.
She said she will finish her degree because it is her goal.
In the Billiter’s family there are five children. Lil Joe or Joe Junior is 13; Madison is 11; Alexis is 9; Pierse is 7; and Braylon is three.
Though their ages vary, Billiter said when Joe Junior, Madison, Alexis and Pierse are in school that is her opportunity to be in school as well.
“I can go to school when the oldest four are in school and for the youngest, I just coordinate my school schedule around when his dad is off or I can have someone babysit him,” she said.
More often than not, Billiter said she has to rely on her grandparents or other relatives to watch the kids. But she said the support really helps to relieve some of the stress and challenges she often faces.
“My greatest challenge is tme,” she said. “Time to get tudying work and time online classes, but I have a supportive family who helps me overcome them for the most part.”
Some challenges that Billiter has had to overcome are financial struggles, arguments with the kids about their grades and a variety of illnesses.
“When these challenges arise, then I start to think maybe I should be working and not going to school,” she said. “I think it is hard when I have challenges and when things come up and I want them to be perfect. But raising your kids is not an option, you just have to do it.”
While every family has their own obstacles, Billiter’s two daughters, Alexis and Madison, have learning disabilities. Alexis is suffering from hearing loss. Both of the girls have ADD and are currently are on an IEP, which is an Individual Education Program, and they get extra help at the Oakwood Learning Center and get one-on-one tutoring, according to Billiter.
“Dealing with their obstacles and making sure that they have the resources that they need to be successful can sometimes feel like an obstacle to me,” she said.
Distraction and noise she said is another obstacle that she must overcome.
“Having that many kids in the house can sometimes be a challenge. I have to be constantly interrupted because so-and-so needs to take a bath or needs something when I am doing my homework, and that means I am not giving 100 percent focus on one project.”