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Oakton holds commencement ceremonies Tuesday

Oakton Community College granted about 600 degrees and certificates to students in caps and gowns in its 45th annual commencement ceremony at 7 p.m. Tuesday at the college's Des Plaines campus, with about half the more than 1,200 eligible students going through the formal ceremony.

Fred Seidel of Skokie, who will turn 90 next month, was the oldest graduate, adding a certificate in Facilities Energy Systems Technology to his many other credentials.

"I love to keep my mind active and to meet the younger students and faculty at Oakton," he said in a news release.

His interest in electrical systems began as a signalman in the Navy in 1943 aboard a minesweeper in the Pacific. During the battle of Okinawa, a kamikaze aircraft crashed into the deck of his ship.

"I remember watching the plane coming in, but the next thing I remember was two months later being in San Francisco," said Seidel. "Some crew members found me floating in the water, put a life jacket on me and saved my life."

Of 108 sailors on board, eight lost their lives and 60 were wounded.

When Seidel returned to his hometown of Chicago, he entered the electricians union where he has logged 70 years.

"As technology changed, I kept going to school and kept learning," said Seidel, who, among other posts through the years, was the chief electrician in the Commonwealth Edison building and helped install the city's first fiber optic cables. "I have always enjoyed learning and it keeps me out of trouble."

Janelle Silva, 36, of Skokie, a graduating student who has studied at Oakton for 15 years mostly while working full time and while also raising her 18-year-old daughter, gave the commencement address.

Also speaking was Yeon Woo Kim of Glenview, outgoing Student Government Association president, who immigrated from Korea 14 years ago.

At Oakton, she held two part-time jobs while excelling as an engineering major. She was a peer mentor, an orientation leader, president of the STEM Club and explored her passion for multimedia and photography as a member of the Oakton Visual Organization.

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