David Edwards was a successful Riverside stockbroker making about $85,000 per year. Life was good. One day it all changed.

With the takeoff of the Internet, Edwards’ business failed. He decided to put $60,000 into a franchise that ultimately did not work. He then started looking for jobs, but because he did not have a college degree, he was offered a position for only $19,000 per year. He and his wife decided that he should go back to school.

“The last seven or eight years have been full of trials,” says Edwards, 44, an MBA student who graduated in June with a bachelor’s degree. “I would work all night and try to go to classes during the day. My wife went back to work to support me.” Edwards also served as senior class treasurer.

Edwards’ wife, Sylvia, works in the human resources office at La Sierra. In April, she was diagnosed with cancer and has survived major surgery and a stroke that left her in a wheelchair.

“At times I have wanted to give up, but Cheryl Bauman, my advisor, would always encourage me. When my wife was seriously ill I missed a lot of classes,” Edwards adds. “My Spanish professor met me in a coffee shop in Moreno Valley and helped me study for two hours.”

Edwards has taken this summer off to spend time with his wife. He plans to complete his MBA next spring and wants to work for Riverside County or start his own business. “I have found my La Sierra MBA experience applicable to real world.”

“God knows the beginning to the end,” says Edwards. “Sometimes the middle is tough but we have history and faith that God knows what He is doing, and He said He would not put more on us than we can stand.”