‘I did not quit’: After 35 years of overcoming challenges, Carmel man earns long-awaited college degree

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For Jon McMath, the road to earning his college diploma was longer than most.

When the Carmel resident turned the tassel at Marian University’s commencement ceremony May 6, it fulfilled a dream that began 35 years ago when he was accepted as a student at Indiana University, a journey with one twist after another.

In 1988, two weeks after graduating from Tipton High School, McMath and his ex-girlfriend were in an automobile accident that put his plans to attend Indiana University in Bloomington that fall on hold.

“She was only injured on her eyebrow, but she doesn’t remember anything,” McMath said. “I remember everything.”

McMath’s spinal cord was severely damaged in the accident, leaving him a paraplegic. After spending his summer in the hospital, he decided to begin college on schedule but enrolled at IU Kokomo, which was closer to home. In 1990, he finally joined his friends at IU Bloomington, but it didn’t go well at either campus.

McMath said he had such severe pain in his legs that it made daily life – let alone college classes – extremely difficult. So, in 1992, he moved to downtown Indianapolis with his brother, where he tried taking classes at IUPUI. But the pain continued, and McMath decided to drop out of school.

By 1999, McMath had gotten married, and the couple was expecting a son. Tired of living with severe pain, he decided to undergo an experimental procedure (with a low rate of success) only being performed at one medical facility at the time. Thankfully, it worked.

“I knew I could not be a good father with the pain, and I wanted so much to be a good father,” McMath said. “Getting rid of the pain opened up life for being a dad, business owner and being able to finish my degree.”

Feeling renewed, McMath got a job at Carmel-based Conseco, where he worked his way up to an assistant vice president position. But it always bothered him that he hadn’t achieved his goal of earning a college degree, something he had promised his grandmother he would do before her death in 1995.

So, when Conseco held an event featuring higher education opportunities, he decided to enroll at Marian College, now known as Marian University. But once again, his life took a turn, as he soon went through a divorce and found it difficult to manage through the upheaval it caused while still working and going to school. His college plans were back on hold.

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Jon McMath owns NAPA Auto Parts stores in Tipton and Kokomo.

In 2010, McMath made a career change when he bought the NAPA Auto Parts store in Tipton from his father. Eight years later, he bought one in Kokomo. In between, he renewed his promise to earn his diploma – this time to his mother, before she died in 2016.

In 2012, McMath married Mona Kheiry, who in 2017 became director of the Center for Teaching and Learning at Marian University. With his wife now working at the school he most recently attended (and now eligible for a tuition break), it seemed the right time for McMath to finish college – more than three decades after he started.

At the commencement ceremony, McMath received a bachelor’s degree in business administration, with honors.

“I’m so proud of him and all the hard work he put into it,” Kheiry said. “Watching him graduate over the weekend was extremely heartwarming. This journey has symbolized him overcoming an aspect of his accident. He hasn’t let it stop him from doing anything in life. Now, that also includes getting his degree.”

Becoming a college graduate isn’t expected to change daily life much for McMath, who continues to own and operate his two automotive stores. He had already found business and personal success without a diploma, but he never considered not fulfilling his longtime dream.

“I kept pushing forward in life, with each obstacle just another challenge,” he said. “So, when I was on the stage going across to shake the president’s hand, I thought about how I did not quit, but (also how) I kept pushing forward. It is who I am and what I do. Call it perseverance or persistence, I keep pushing forward to be better today than I was yesterday.”

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Jon McMath, right, receives his degree in business administration – with honors – from Daniel J. Elsener, president of Marian University. . (Photos courtesy of Jon McMath)

A long journey

  • 1988 – Between May 19 and June 4, turns 18, graduates from Tipton High School and is in automobile accident that causes spinal cord injury
  • 1988 – Starts college at IU Kokomo in August
  • 1990 – Begins classes at IU Bloomington
  • 1992 – Moved to Indianapolis and began taking classes at IUPUI
  • 1999 – Successful DREZ lesion surgery to reduce pain, begins working at Conseco in Carmel; son, Parker born 3 months premature
  • 2005 – Begins classes at Marian College
  • 2010 – Bought NAPA Auto Parts store from father in Tipton
  • 2012 – Marries Mona Kheiry
  • 2018 – Bought NAPA Auto Parts store in Kokomo
  • 2022 – Went back to Marian University
  • 2023 – Graduates from Marian University with a business administration degree with honors

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