Jim Diehl, B.S. ’67, considers himself a lifelong student. The George Washington University alumnus has served in the Navy, worked as an engineer, lawyer and most recently flight attendant—and he’s not slowing down.
“I've always enjoyed being a student,” Diehl said. “Of all the things I've done, I probably have had the most success at being a student.”
He started his journey with higher education while attending the GW School of Engineering and Applied Science in 1962. He credits GW for providing him with a world-class education that set him up for a fulfilling career.
“The engineering degree I got at GW was the threshold that allowed me to do everything else that I've done,” Diehl said.
GW ended up having a bigger impact on his future than he could have imagined – it is where he met his late wife, Patricia Kay Dryden-Diehl, B.A. ’66.
The couple was married for 45 years before Patricia passed away in 2012. To honor her memory, Diehl has set up an endowed scholarship at GW in his wife’s name as part of the Third Century Scholarship Endowment Match.
“I owe a lot of my life to GW,” Diehl said, reflecting on why he gives back to GW. “It wasn’t just a place where I got an education, it was the start of my family.”
Diehl met Patricia during their sophomore year. He pledged Phi Sigma Kappa and Patricia was in Kappa Kappa Gamma. The two worked together planning joint socials for their organizations.
They remained friends and didn’t start dating until their senior year. Diehl remembers that year being busy as he balanced his classes with his duties for his fraternity. He was also in the Navy Reserve while at GW and spent time at least one weekend a month drilling at Joint Base Andrews, then called Andrews Air Force Base.
But in between juggling his various commitments, he made time to have dinner with Patricia every night, walking her from her residence hall to the dining hall.
“We just spent the fall going out on long walks, having dinner together and then going back to our studies,” Diehl said.
“By the end of our senior year, we spent a lot of time together. And concluded we were genuinely interested in each other.”
They got married following Diehl’s graduation in 1967.
After graduating from GW, the young couple continued their individual Navy service and then moved to Boston and New York before settling in the D.C. area in 1973, where Diehl has lived for the past 50 years.
After active duty, he jumped headfirst into his lifelong learning journey and made the decision to pursue a law degree. “I've always enjoyed the pragmatism or structure of the study of law,” Diehl said.
After earning his law degree, Diehl continued working as an engineer until 1990 when he started a law practice. He also taught classes part-time as an adjunct professor at several schools for almost a decade.
Diehl retired from his law practice in 2014 and decided to return to another passion—aviation.
Diehl obtained his pilot's license in 1968 and nearly 50 years later he returned to the field as flight attendant for Southwest Airlines.
“There is an age limit for being a pilot but there is no age limit for being a flight attendant,” Diehl said. “I like being part of an operating aircrew. There is a sense of togetherness and a joint commitment and mission that we share. It's a good environment for me right now.”
He is also using his time to return to another interest, engineering. Diehl is in the process of working toward his master’s degree and notes that while he could use this time to slow down, he believes one of life’s biggest joys is the pursuit of learning.
What advice would he offer students? Embrace the idea of not sticking with one field of study, he said, because life has so much to offer.
“I think there's nothing wrong with switching gears,” Diehl said. “And there's nothing wrong with coming back to what you've done before. If I look at my career path, I’ve got about 205 years of experience over 60 years in doing different things. I spent 36 years in the Navy Reserve, I’ve been an engineer probably for 27 years and an attorney for 40 years, an airplane owner and operator for a long period of time. And I kind of realize I've never left anything that I've started. I kind of weave in and out of it.”
He hopes the recipient of this scholarship in his late wife’s name uses it as a chance to pursue their interests and take in all life has to teach them.
“I want them to use the scholarship to have the confidence and the sense of purpose to pursue his or her goals or ambitions,” Diehl said.
Open Doors: The Centuries Initiative for Scholarships & Fellowships charts a course to increase access to the transformative power of a GW degree. Learn more about doubling your impact for GW student support through the Third Century Scholarship Endowment Match.
