93-Year-Old Texan Graduates From Houston-Area High School
By Anna Gallegos
April 14, 2021
Pat Moore was on track to graduate from Alvin High School with the class of 1946 when Uncle Sam had other plans.
Moore was drafted. While his classmates were completing high school exams and writing essays, Moore entered the U.S. Air Force.
“I started flying when I was a junior in high school because ... I just liked it,” Moore told KHOU.
Life got in the way of Moore finishing high school after his time in the military. He had a family and a career as a crop duster pilot, but he never forgot about getting his diploma.
Now, nearly 75 years after he was supposed to graduate, the 94-year-old Moore finally received his high school diploma. He was able to benefit from a Texas law that allows veterans to receive their diploma if they were drafted before graduation.
The Alvin Independent School District held a special ceremony for the military veteran on Tuesday, April 13. He wore a graduation gown in Alvin's colors with a cowboy hat, instead of the mortarboard.
Asides from his diploma, Moore was also given a brand new letterman jacket since he played football, basketball, and baseball for the high school as a teenager.
The graduation ceremony came at a perfect time because the nonagenarian's great-granddaughter is currently a senior at Alvin.