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The mother and daughter pair of Victoria and Lisa Lopez graduated from the University of Houston on Friday, Dec. 17, having gone to great lengths to appear in the same graduation ceremony as each other and traveling a hard road past many obstacles to get their degrees.
Victoria and Lisa Lopez have a 19-year age gap. Victoria, aged 28, retained her maiden name for months after she got married in the hopes of walking the same stage as her mother when she graduated.
"It’s a once-in-a-lifetime kind of thing," Victoria Lopez told the Houston Chronicle. "How many times do you get to graduate with your mom? A bachelor’s degree! Not your second, not your third. Your first."
Lisa Lopez and her husband had Victoria when Lisa Lopez was just out of high school. The now 47-year-old mother managed to graduate even after having to take a semester off to care for a family member. Victoria and Lisa are cited as nontraditional students, those who attend college years after most students began their university stints.
Lisa's son Jeremy had internal bleeding in his lungs which is what required her to leave school for a stint, according to a post on the University of Houston's official website. She was able to return to school after Jeremy received a successful liver transplant. Both women also had to work full-time jobs while in school, contributing another obstacle.
According to the Houston Chronicle, the mother and daughter pair both received bachelor's degrees from the College of Technology at the University of Houston, a challenging field.
The elder Lopez will be continuing at the University for a master's degree in HR development and has the eventual goal of being a professor in college, according to a post from the University of Houston's website. Victoria Lopez got a degree in biotechnology and is a pre-med student. She is currently expecting a baby with her husband and plans to go to medical school in 2023.