Director of Financial Aid Mary Hall plans to retire
RETIRMENT
At the end of March, Saddleback College’s Financial Aid Office will be giving a farewell to its Director of Financial Aid of 35 years, Mary Hall, as she will be retiring.
Hall is a Saddleback Alumni who studied business administration.
“Before coming to Saddleback College, I worked in the banking industry,” Hall said. “I would have pursued that direction further, but I was fortunate to be hired at Saddleback.”
While Hall’s prior experiences in banking and the stock market landed her a job coincidentally at Saddleback, Mary Long hired her as an accountant clerk in the Financial Aid Office.
“I have never left the Student Financial Assistance Department at Saddleback College,” Hall said. “I enjoy working with students and worked my way up over the years to my present position.”
Hall’s most memorable moment was when a student who only had a seventh grade education passed the ability to benefit test.
“My [first] thought was ‘how can she do college work?’ She worked hard and was dedicated,” Hall said. “She went on to finish her college degree at Saddleback and continued on to her four year degree.”
According to Hall, now staff members can work here for years and you may never meet them personally.
“When the college was smaller, we were like a close knit family,” Hall said.
Hall’s claims that the most rewarding part about her job is the support and respect of her office staff.
“I will miss the adventure and the challenge of financial aid,” Hall said. “It is time to adventure to the next stage of my life.”
With four children and five grandchildren, Hall is looking forward to having more family time.
“I am going to do what I hear every other retiree say,” Hall said. “I am going to be so busy that I will wonder how I had time to work!”
Hall’s final day at Saddleback will be Mar. 30.
“My husband, a retiree from Saddleback College for 15 years is ecstatic and expects to give me back his ‘honey do’ list,” Hall said.