Dianna Provencher is a mother of two, a grandmother of three, a beekeeper of literally thousands and a Quinsigamond Community College graduate. They say an interesting journey never follows a straight path and Dianna is a perfect example of how that came to be true. But... there's more to Dianna's story, some may say she's as busy as a bee.
Dianna was pretty much right in the middle of a family of nine children, three older and five younger than her. She never had the opportunity to finish high school, she dropped out in order to help the family when her dad got sick. While most kids were worrying about prom dates, she was learning how to overcome challenges and work through the tough times.
She eventually had two kids of her own on her own. A hard-working single mom who wanted a chance to finish what she started and get an education. So, what does a hard working girl do when the going gets tough? She got her GED and as soon as her kids went to school and then she came to QCC. Dianna had two kids, a job waiting tables and day and night classes on the schedule wherever she could squeeze them in.
“I was pretty nervous because I had already missed subjects by not finishing high school. I thought, ‘Where do I start and am I good enough; am I smart enough?’’ she said, adding, “I wanted to have a real diploma. I wanted to have something no one could take away.”
Lots of hard work later, she had earned one degree in Business Administration and another in Data Processing. Her professors encouraged her and inspired her to keep going... they were her role models. She was so inspired that she continued on with her education, took her two QCC degrees and transferred to Lesley College. While working days at Digital Equipment Corporation, she was taking night classes to earn a Bachelor Degree in Business Administration from Lesley College. Eventually Digital Equipment Corp was bought out by Quantum and she stayed on as a business system analyst for 18 years. Downsizing eventually got the best of her department when they were all let go. Here she was, in her 50s... wondering what she would do next.
What she did was land a job as an Administrative Assistant at Central MA Regional Planning Commission. Dianna worked her way up to Business Manager over the span of ten years. In her spare time she met her husband, bought a farm and started beekeeping. She is now the proud owner of Little Bit Farm and Apiary in Leicester, Massachusetts. In her "spare time" she sells honey and makes beeswax candles and lip balm. She also teaches beekeeping to students and gardening to seniors at the local senior center.
Is that ALL she does? Actually no, there's more. Dianna has been a Leicester Selectman since 2005 and was on the town's Conservation Commission for 18 years.
When we asked her how she is able to everything she does, her answer was simple.
“If you have a will you can do it. Single moms need to know that their life is not just stuck. It’s hard, I’m not going to lie, but they need to think, ‘If she can do it, why can’t I?’ You have got to get your foot in the door and you have to keep going. I kept going,” she said, adding, “QCC gave me that confidence.”
