"I actually forgot that I looked different from the other students when I was at Drexel. She also didn't care that she was nearly four decades older than most of her peers. "I was already used to working many hours a day, but this required a minimum of 80 hours a week." I knew that I found my home," she says of her journey. "It wasn't until I enrolled in Drexel that I went, 'Ahh, this is what it's all about.' I felt so comfortable there.
I didn't realize that I needed my creativity to survive and to thrive," she explains. "So much of what I did in the business world and the world of education involved creating new projects and programs. But instead of her initial plan to enroll in a one-year program, with great encouragement from Ted Beringer, her husband of 13 years, she chose a three-year master's degree program at Drexel University in Philadelphia, one of the top fashion schools in the world. "By never letting fear stop me, I learned from every endeavor."Ī natural-born risk taker, she continued to tour local art and fashion schools, including the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) and the Parsons School of Design. I have never been afraid to receive constructive criticism during any of my pursuits as a teacher, the editor of a monthly publication or in business," explains Volpe Beringer. She was certain that her sister, the art teacher, had received all of the talent in the family. She decided to pursue this dream in spite of the fact that she could not illustrate or draw. Within a week she was in New York and back home in Philadelphia touring fashion schools. Volpe Beringer tried to talk herself into something "more practical" such as interior design but allowed herself to fantasize about what she wanted in her heart of hearts. "This led me to ask the one question that truly changed my life - if I was young, what would I want to study? What would I want to learn? And it immediately came to me that it was fashion design." The now 68-year-old Volpe Beringer admits, "I was lying awake feeling a bit jealous of my children who were learning so many cool things, but who gets jealous of their own kids? I guess I did." When she applied to college in fashion design, she transitioned from being a successful educator to a management-level position as an advocate for educators. She truly believes that every great idea starts with a dream and that we need to find the gumption to pursue our dreams with everything we've got, regardless of the obstacles that always slide into our path.Īt the time the Philadelphia-area native found inspiration from her two grown sons, Dan, now 44, a successful company president in the finance arena, and David, now 42, a musician, videographer and photographer. This is why, at 58, Nancy Volpe Beringer mustered up the guts to go back to school and pursue her dream of becoming a fashion designer. It is never too late to pursue your passions, especially when you don't let fear stand in your way. This article is reprinted by permission from. 'It is clearly never too late to follow your dreams.' She didn't care that she was nearly 40 years older than most of her classmates.
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