Law grad, 70, who celebrated 50th wedding anniversary June 1, is now studying for bar exam
Unlike some younger classmates, Sandra Wilson didn’t go to law school for the money.
Nor is she worried about balancing a fledgling legal career with marriage and children—at 70, she just celebrated her 50th wedding anniversary June 1 and is a grandmother, the News Herald reports.
Now, after earning her law degree in May from Faulkner University in Alabama, she is back at home in Panama City, Fla., studying for the bar exam in 10-hour stints. She hopes to find work as a child advocate or another job focused on children once she is licensed to practice.
“I love the law,” she told the newspaper.
While she was a law student, Wilson lived in Montgomery, Ala., to be closer to Faulkner. It was the first time in her life she had ever lived on her own—before she married, she lived with her parents, the newspaper recounts.
In 2009, she earned her bachelor’s degree from Florida State University. Many of her papers there focused on legal topics, Wilson said, and when classmates decided to go to law school, she thought to herself: “I wish I could do that.” Then she realized she could.
Her husband, Steve, has stood behind her unusual career trajectory at a time when many others their age are focused on retirement.
“We had been married for 47 years, and she put up with me,” he told the News Herald. “If she was going to go, I was going to support her to the very end.”
