High school graduation is a time for cap-throwing, long gowns, last-minute pranks and pomp and circumstance. But for 83-year-old James Egan, his high school graduation on Monday May 5, 2008, was much different.
In a room filled with family members at the South Colonie District office, Egan, of Colonie, was presented with the diploma he would have received nearly 60 years ago if he had not chosen to join the U.S. Coast Guard and graduated high school.
Before Egan served in the Coast Guard, he was a student at Albany High School. During his term, he was a 3rd Class Electrician’s Mate in the U.S. Coast Guard Personnel Separation Center in Brooklyn.
Egan said he luckily `was never in any bad situations,` though he traveled a lot and `got to see the world.`
For more on this story, check back to www.spotlightnews.com, or read the May 14th print edition of the Colonie Spotlight.
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