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She does it all By Amber Fossen Ashland Daily Tidings For many soon-to-be graduates, the road to commencement is paved with obstacles, making the hard-won day all that more sweet. Suzanne Bells-McManus, a Southern Oregon University Masters in Education special education program student, had many hurdles to overcome. Between raising seven children and owning and operating a family-run restaurant, Bells-McManus found time to pursue her studies despite all odds. Suzanne Bells-McManus (back right) poses for a family photo with husband Mark and baby Soaladoab in their Talent restaurant Todo Chata. McManus has earned a master's degree in education from Southern Oregon University while juggling the demands of seven children, a business, and a husband in the military. Her children are (from left) Sechereang, 5, Warang, 7, Matthew, 19, EJ, 22, Nolan, 9, and Olikong, 4. She will receive her diploma Saturday at Mountain Arena. Ashland Daily Tidings/DENISE BARATTA Bells-McManus said when she applied for the program, university officials questioned her ability to do it all. "They interviewed me twice. That was their concern: how could I do it with a business and children," she said. But Bells-McManus is no stranger to difficult feats. Raised in Guam by her grandparents, Bells-McManus and her husband Mark met when they were sophomores in high school, becoming parents when they were just seniors. "We were teen parents. All the odds were probably against us," the 40-year-old Palau descendent said. "It was hard. There were a lot of expectations and I felt that I had failed." Bells-McManus' husband enlisted in the military and both enrolled in part-time school. Juggling the responsibilities of parenthood and course requirements was difficult, but Bells-McManus succeeded in attaining her elementary education degree from the University of Guam. After teaching for several years, Bells-McManus became aware of the need for special education services on the 33-mile long U.S. territory. "It doesn't matter what part of the world you're in, there are always children with special needs," Bells-McManus said. "I want to go back there (to Guam) and serve." Guam did not offer a graduate special education program, prompting Bells-McManus to consider applying to school in the states. However, after several years of moving around - from Saipan to Louisiana to San Diego - her higher education interests were temporarily put on hold in support of her husband of 22 years, whose dream was to one day own and operate a restaurant. "If anything, we've always been very supportive of each other's goals and dreams," she said. In October of 2000, the Bells-McManus' purchased Todo Chata (formerly Chata) located in Talent. The decision took Bells-McManus away from teaching and into the kitchen to help the family-run business. "It really taught us that nothing good comes easy," she said. In fact, few things have come easy for Bells-McManus. As if raising seven children wasn't complicated enough - the McManus' children include EJ, 22, Matthew, 19, Nolan, 9, Warang, 7, Sechereang, 5, Olikong, 4, and 20-month-old Soaladoab - her fourth child was diagnosed with a liver tumor at 15 months of age. Subsequent surgery and chemotherapy helped eradicate the tumor. Moreover, her fifth child was hurriedly born in the front yard of her San Diego home. After getting a handle on the challenges of parenthood and running a business, Bells-McManus applied for SOU's Master in Education special education program. She will be walking in Saturday's commencement ceremony at Mountain Arena - the venue name of Raider Stadium for graduation - with the other 1,160 SOU grads "It's an accomplishment and I see the end and the end is going back home so for me, it really is a journey," she said. In the fall, the family will move to Eugene, where Bells-McManus has been accepted into an early intervention special education program at the University of Oregon on scholarship. Bells-McManus said after she finishes the program, she intends to return to Guam where her skills will be put to good use. "What I would like to do in Guam is have an early intervention hub in the Pacific," she said. For Bells-McManus, who has spent a lifetime dedicated to her family, helping others just seems natural. "When you serve others, there are no words to describe that feeling," she said. "That's why I'm in it, because I've made someone else happy and so I'm happy." LINKS: DAILY TIDINGS: Main | News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Opinion | Columnists | AP News | Subscribe | Archives | Weather | Classifieds | Contact Us | Privacy REVELS: Main | Calendar | Dining | Movies | T.V. OTHER: Road Cams Copyright 2003 Ashland Daily Tidings 541.482.3456. 1661 Siskiyou Blvd., Ashland, OR 97520. Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. - Advertisers -