Fresno Student Uses Education to Deal With Grief

Lydia Conlin had always enjoyed her job working in a pharmacy in customer service but when her mother passed away, she needed to learn something new.

“I was crying at home in the evenings. That was the time I always called my mom,” she said. “My husband said maybe you can go to UEI College and ask them for information about how to get in. Find a good distraction. That good distraction you can use along the way.”

That’s what Lydia did. She visited the UEI College Fresno campus and decided to enroll in a program that she could use right away in her job. She decided to become a Pharmacy Technician.

“There’s only two ways to go. If you are in grief from losing a loved one or even a divorce, if you will go to the good side of life, not the bad side. I went to the good side,” she said. “I wanted to do something that would help me along the way.”

Lydia took great pride in having perfect attendance and good grades. Her work ethic is something she learned from her mom when they lived together in the Philippines.

“My mom worked so hard for the family because my dad died at an early age,” she said. “She really worked so hard. In my own life, at age 17 I was looking at my mom working so hard and realized I had to do it on my own… My personality is to not give up. It’s just determination and courage and at the same time I said my mom is watching me and giving me strength.”

Lydia had the benefit of using what she was learning right away in her current job. The training provided opportunities for her to move up.

Furthering her education didn’t change her grief, but it provided some relief and provided a new way to make her mother proud.

“Grief to me is love,” Lydia said. “I wanted to improve my knowledge and UEI was there for me. I’m so grateful for UEI.”