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“I wouldn’t be where I am right now if it wasn’t for SIU,” said Major Elester Latham (’75). “SIU was everything to me.” Latham, who graduated 50 years ago with a degree in theatre  was one of more than 40 Golden Graduates at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville’s 2025 spring commencement exercises on Saturday, May 10. Latham, began his career as a United States Air Force and commercial airline pilot eventually returning to his first love of acting and appearing in the blockbuster film “Air Force One.” Latham counts his 1975 graduation from SIUE one of his many accomplishments, but he missed the opportunity to accept his diploma on stage when his name was called. He was running late.

“I had gotten back to SIU that day too late,” Latham recalled. “I was out in the area where everybody's standing watching the graduation, and they call my name, and I couldn't make it up there.”

He added, “I still have my graduation envelope. All these last 50 years, that had been one of my regrets. So I always kept that envelope, and I always looked at it from time to time, as ‘Man, that is the one thing I didn't get to do.’ What do you know? Fifty years came along, and I hear, ‘We’re going to give you another graduation!’"

For Joan Griffin (’65), the first woman to receive a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration/General Accounting, there was a 60-year delay in receiving her diploma as part of an SIUE graduation ceremony. “I didn’t get to do it the first time because I had a child. I had a baby, and I couldn’t go,” she said.

Griffin shared SIUE’s 2025 graduation weekend with her daughter, Jill Griffin (’03, ’16, ’25), who received master’s degrees in both music and math during the spring commencement ceremonies. Joan Griffin attended the Golden Graduation as a proud mother and especially appreciated her own graduation moment because she was told as a student graduation was not possible.

“When I signed up [for classes] back in the early 60s, the advisor told me, ‘You'll never graduate,’ and I thought, ‘Well, what a thing to say,’” said Griffin. “I found out my first class why: Because I was the only female in any of my classes.”

Griffin ended up proving him wrong and gaining a fan. “He became my best friend,” she said. “He really did. He would bring his family and visit me as I moved to Cincinnati or Massachusetts, so we ended up being good friends.”

SIUE’s Golden Graduation recognizes alumni by celebrating the golden anniversary of their degrees, having crossed the commencement stage 50 or more years ago. Since its inception in 2017, the annual reunion has given alumni the opportunity to reconnect with classmates while celebrating their time on campus and their commitment to SIUE.

"Our Golden Graduation Reunion is so much more than a luncheon, ceremony and campus tour—it’s a homecoming filled with meaning. For many of our Golden Grads, the reunion offers something they never had or thought they’d get again: a chance to walk across the stage, be recognized, and feel the pride of all they’ve accomplished. It’s one of the most heartfelt events we host each year, and we’re honored to celebrate their legacy at SIUE,” said Cathy Taylor, (’15), Associate Vice Chancellor for University Advancement and executive director of Alumni and Donor Relations.

Golden Graduate and SIU Board of Trustee Ed Curtis (’75) received his Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree from SIUE. He was appointed to the SIU Board of Trustees by Governor JB Pritzker in 2019.

Curtis is President Emeritus of Memorial Health, having retired from his role as President and Chief Executive Officer at the end of March 2025. He began his career at Memorial in 1975 as a registered nurse.

Curtis presided as the Golden Graduation Luncheon’s keynote speaker and spoke of adaptability, mentorship, resilience and “the foundation that has launched of lifetime of purpose for me and for you.”

“As a nursing student, I completed clinical rotations at nearly 20 different hospitals,” shared Curtis. “That’s not something you fully appreciate when you’re lugging around textbooks and trying to figure out new charting systems every few weeks. But looking back now, I see what an extraordinary gift it was.”

He added, “Those experiences introduced me to different ways of working, thinking, and leading. I saw diverse organizational cultures, interacted with a wide range of staff and patients, and learned that adaptability and resilience aren’t just useful traits—they’re essential for making a difference. That early exposure taught me to be comfortable with change, to stay curious, and to always look at the whole system, not just one part of it. Those lessons became the foundation of my 50-year career in healthcare.”

Opportunities to train in professional spaces were not just limited to the medical field. Griffin’s SIUE experience was limited small classes that numbered five students where she was the only woman and located on the Alton campus, but when Griffin joined the business club launched by one of her professors, students were able to branch out.

“The club would go to different businesses in St. Louis like Ford Motor Company, and we went to a tire company to see how everything is made. We took a bus and went to Chicago and visited Harris Bank in the Chicago Stock Exchange,” Griffin recalled. “We got to meet all the students in the business classes that way, because we all belonged to the club.”

Griffin then offered this advice to future Cougars: “Whatever you want to do go with it. Whatever you’ve got your heart set on, don't let anybody talk you out of it. Because just as when the advisor told me, ‘You'll never graduate,’ don't let that stop you. Go for it!”

“While I was at SIU, I was in more than 30 plays. I was in three plays at one time,” said Latham. “Doing so gave me freedom, and it helped me understand that I wasn't as slow as I thought I was.”

Latham did not attend high school past the ninth grade. He ended up joining the military and headed to Vietnam. When he returned, he received his GED before enrolling in Forest Park Community College with his friends, who, as a group, decided to transfer to SIUE. “I figured that when I when I didn't finish high school—I went to the ninth grade and left—I had no study habits. So, I knew that if I was going to make it as an actor, I had to apply myself and apply myself in a heavy way. I lived and breathed acting. It was a constant thing with me every day.”

Latham also enrolled in aerospace courses and claimed his theatre skills in memorization easily transferred to his aviation career.

“Even as an airline pilot, you have to have a memory, in case you lose an engine. You don't have time to reference things. It has to be in your head right then and there,” said Latham. “If there’s an engine failure. What do you do?” 
 
Latham appears in the Xfinity commercial “The Aviators.”

Latham is proud of having graduated on the Dean’s List, as his ROTC’s Distinguished Graduate and as Cadet Commander. His service at the University also included roles as Vice President of Student Body and President of the Black Student Association.

“I did it all,” said Latham. “As a matter of fact, at one time I was going to train the mascot.”

Alongside the strong academics at SIUE, Curtis noted the fond memories.

“Of course, experiencing the Mississippi River Music Festival alongside fellow students remains one of the most unforgettable highlights of my time at SIUE — a perfect blend of music, friendship, and the vibrant spirit of campus life,” said Curtis. “SIUE didn’t just give me an education, it gave me a mindset—one focused on learning, adapting, and serving with purpose. I’m forever grateful.” 
 
PHOTOS:  2025 Class of SIUE Golden Graduates; Major Elester Latham (’75); Joan Griffin (’65); SIU Board of Trustee Ed Curtis (’75); The Alestle student newspaper featuring a photo and caption of the production "Pantaglieze"; Latham in airplane cockpit