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Michael D. Chason Director of Public Relations ABAC 30 -- 2802 Moore Highway Tifton, GA 31793-2601 Phone 229-391-5055 Fax 229-391-4781 mchason@abac.edu

Nancy Lott outside Tift Hall at ABAC

IMMEDIATE DECEMBER 7, 2004

LOTT OVERCOMES ODDS TO EARN DEGREE

TIFTON— The speaker for Abraham Baldwin College’s fall graduation ceremony on Dec. 18 knows a thing or two about dedication, persistence, and determination in the presence of great obstacles.

Nancy Lott, a nursing major from Rochelle, has overcome many obstacles to get where she is today.

In 1990, she began having heart problems. Lott underwent heart surgery at the age of 23, having a pacemaker installed. She had her first of eight procedures at this time, as well. This procedure had only been done on 10 patients at the time, seven of those had passed away.

In 1997, Lott was diagnosed with Idiopathic Dilated Cardiomyopathy (IDC), a terminal heart disease and was told she had five years to live.

Lott said, “The doctor told me there was nothing to be done. I went through all the emotions of pity and feeling sorry for myself. But then I refused to believe that the diagnosis was the end and got a second opinion.”

IDC is caused by a virus, such as the flu. Lott said within the first five years after being diagnosed, 70 percent of IDC patients die, and 85 percent die within 10 years.

“I was not going to be one of those people,” said Lott.

Lott had seven surgeries and was taking 11 different medications daily until her eighth experimental procedure in 2000 at Emory University. She was only the second person to undergo this type of procedure at the time. She now takes only two medications and has no restrictions on what she can and can’t do.

After all her medical problems and struggles, Lott decided she wanted to go back to school and be a nurse.

“I decided to pursue nursing because of my being sick,” Lott said. “I saw just how beneficial nurses are to the medical field.”

But Lott’s obstacles were not over.

“I had one person tell me that I could not attend the nursing program because I was disabled and even if I did make the grades, I would not be alive to see them because the program is so stressful,” Lott said. “That just made me even more determined.”

Lott graduates Dec. 18 with a 4.0 grade point average and has a job waiting for her at Taylor Regional Hospital in Hawkinsville as an ICU nurse. The 4.0 GPA means she has made an “A” in every subject.

Not only is she at the top of her class and the graduation speaker, but she is a member of Phi Theta Kappa and was recently awarded a trip to St. Simons Island through the Workforce Investment Area (WIA) Program that helps with tuition, books, and other expenses.

Lott isn’t the only member of her family attending ABAC. Her son, Chris Williamson, is majoring in physical therapy, and her daughter, Courtney Williamson, will attend ABAC next fall to pursue a career in the medical field. Lott is the wife of Darryl Lott and has three younger children, Caitlin Williamson, Alyssa Lott and Ben Lott.

The graduation ceremony begins at 10 a.m. in ABAC’s Gressette Gym. Approximately 145 graduates are expected to participate.

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