DECATUR -Liz Mundy Swords, Richland Community College's Distinguished Alumnus, believes she wouldn't be where she is today without the college.

At the 36th annual commencement Friday, she told graduates that Richland's work for them will never end.

"Richland will be a continuous resource for you," she said. "The impact of your education from Richland is continuous, dynamic and exponential."

Swords also urged the graduates to remember the friends and family who supported them to this point.

"Please join me in something you may never have another opportunity to do," she said. "Stand and give your best applause to your family and friends."

Family support was the reason Lisa Perkins made it to graduation. Perkins, 35, graduated as a registered nurse Friday, and Monday will begin her new job at Decatur Memorial Hospital in the cardiovascular unit. Without her family, she said, she wouldn't have made it.

Her parents helped her financially. Her mother-in-law helped her with running the household and her children, ages 13 and 16, cheered her on all the way. She said she hopes her success at pursuing her dream inspires them.

"I hope that they take from this to pursue their careers right out of high school and get an education and get established in what they want to do early in life," she said.

She never thought of being a nurse as a youngster, she said, but having children and realizing how much she enjoys helping others steered her in that direction.

Chris Hickman, 23, of Clinton is headed to Illinois State University for a bachelor's degree in criminal justice. He hopes to work in corrections or possibly the FBI someday. He got a little experience in corrections by doing an internship at Decatur Correctional Center.

"I thought criminal justice was interesting," he said. "I wanted to see how the criminal mind worked and how people got into trouble."

Jason Brown worked as a tool-and-die maker and needed a career alteration after breaking his neck racing motocross. He spent four months in the hospital recovering and now uses a wheelchair, but because he still enjoys the work he shifted his focus to the technical side and now is a designer, thanks to Richland.

"I decided to go back to school, and I'm actually working," said Brown, 31. "I work at Decatur Custom Tool, and I design them now. I just use my skills."

Valerie Wells can be reached at vwells@herald-review.com or 421-7982.