For 17 mature students, June 24 was a moment of accomplishment, receiving their mature student diploma.

The Morden Adult Education Centre prides itself on being a place of second chances, and for Valedictorian Ben Guenther and runner up and Banquet MC Danielle Johnson it was the first day of their new future.

"It's a great sense of accomplishment, and I feel like a big weight has been lifted from my shoulders that has been lingering so long," says Johnson.

Johnson dropped out when she was a teenager, and after getting a job and living independently, she didn't have time to get her diploma.

Guenther was in a similar situation, dropping out of school in the eighth grade, he says it was something that was lingering over him for the past 12 years. He says as a child, he didn't care about education and only wanted to get a job and make money.

Now that he had the opportunity to tackle schooling as an adult allowed him to achieve levels of new academic success.

"I'm kind of thankful that it happened and that I'm sitting here right now because the experience at Morden Adult Ed was amazing. It's a lot better than school, in my opinion. I didn't dread coming to school here, and I dreaded every single day of my life going to school every morning, and I look forward to coming here every single day."

Education is a choice, and as a teenager, her priorities weren't set on school says Johnson, and as an adult now it felt fulfilling to work for high grades and knowing that all your hard work is going towards bettering your future when you achieve your diploma.

"It's amazing how many opportunities are open to you once you've got it. I'm very happy I went through all the work to do it," Johnson says.

Now with their diplomas in hand, both Johson and Geunthers will be pursuing post-secondary education. Johnson plans to attend Red River in Winkler for Business Accounting and Management, Geunthers wants to take courses in education and teach at a local school in the Morden/Winkler area.