A Centenarian’s Journey

Continue Reading Issue 42

When Gussie (Paster) Sitkin ’43 arrived at Willimantic State Teachers College (WSTC)  — now Eastern Connecticut State University — in 1939, life as she knew it was about to change. 

Born in 1921 on a farm in rural eastern Connecticut, Sitkin grew up with a strong work ethic and a sense of resiliency that would carry her through every chapter of her life. 

She attended WSTC for four years on a full scholarship. “I stayed at the dorm for six months of the year — the cold months,” Sitkin recalled. If ever she had to commute from her home 20 miles away, “I hitchhiked.” 

In Willimantic, Sitkin met a diverse community of students. “There were students from different financial backgrounds, different places, and with different personalities,” she said. “What I enjoyed most about being a student were the classes — you had required classes, but you also had a choice of others.” 

Sitkin found joy in unexpected places. “I loved the folk dance course — the teacher was a delight — as I used to go to folk dances with my brother when I was a teen,” she said. “I even took a music class, even though my previous background in music was nil.”  

But these were not ordinary college years. 

The U.S. had just entered World War II, and its shadow loomed over every decision. “Students were very anxious about what to do — whether to leave and join up or to complete their courses,” Sitkin recalled. “Some students left before the end of the school year with special permission.”  

With her senior year cut short and a male teacher shortage due to the war, Sitkin quickly transitioned into teaching, taking on a combined class of kindergarteners and first graders. “It was difficult for me as a new teacher, but I got used to it,” she said. In hindsight, “I really loved it.”  

In 1945, Sitkin’s life took another turn when she married Joe Sitkin, a radar repairman at the military base in New London. Soon after, she left teaching and moved with Joe to Southern California, where they raised three children and built a new life together.

“We had a wonderful life for 75 years,” she said. 

Sitkin’s passion for education and helping others inevitably called her back to the classroom. In 1979, she returned to teaching before moving into school counseling. “I was fortunate to land a job as an elementary school counselor in the Los Angeles Unified School District — it was the first time the district had counselors at the elementary level,” she said. 

Her drive for professional growth didn’t stop there. While still counseling in schools, Sitkin pursued a license as a marriage and family counselor and earned her doctorate in education in 1985. She retired from school counseling in 1999 and then began her final professional chapter as a marriage and family therapist, a career she continued into her 100s. 

“I’ve had a great life and a rewarding career. As you can see, counseling and therapy — helping kids and adults through emotional issues and traumas — has been my passion.” 

Sitkin turns 104 on Oct. 17. From a hitchhiking farm girl in Connecticut to a trailblazing counselor in Los Angeles, she looks back with gratitude on a century of service, love, and growth.

Continue Reading Issue 42