Student has a passion for medicine

Maddi Boettner has a passion for medicine. The Sisters High School junior has gotten a boost along her chosen career path through innovative education programs made available to her in Sisters.

In her first trimester this year, she shadowed a doctor at The Center, cementing her interest in neurology.

"It was a super-cool experience that not everybody gets to have," she said.

Last February she was invited to attend the three-day Congress of Future Medical Leaders in Washington, D.C. Attending seemed out of reach - but the Sisters Science Club stepped in to make it happen.

"They funded me to go to the actual congress and part of my airfare to get there," Boettner said. "Without that, I probably couldn't have gone, so that was very nice."

Such assistance is part of the educational outreach effort of the Sisters Science Club. Similarly, they support students' trek to the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center in Washington. They provide such experiences to underclassmen so that they can act upon what they learn in selection of coursework.

The congress was intensive - three 12-hour days.

"We got to watch a live surgery on the big screen, broadcasted from Chicago, and ask questions while they were doing it," Boettner recalled.

"Sitting through the congress for 12 hours a day listening to Nobel Prize-winners, Intel prize-winners, patients, and doctors at the top of the field is so motivating," Boettner wrote in a report to science club president Bob Collins. "I learned that with failure comes success, you aren't a failure unless you give up. Fall down eight times, get up nine.

"Speakers at the congress included, Jack Andraka, a 17-year-old student who found a new test for pancreatic cancer, Connie Mariano, the personal physician to the president, Brittany Wengler, founder of an electronic way to track breast cancer, Carmen Tarleton, one of the first patients to ever receive a full face transplant, and many other speakers with their fair share of achievements."

Perhaps the most important aspect of Boettner's educational experiences this year is gaining the sense that her career path is not just a dream - that she can actually do it. Heading into her senior year, she's looking at colleges, planning the next steps in pursuing her path.

Author Bio

Jim Cornelius, Editor in Chief

Jim Cornelius is editor in chief of The Nugget and author of “Warriors of the Wildlands: True Tales of the Frontier Partisans.” A history buff, he explores frontier history across three centuries and several continents on his podcast, The Frontier Partisans. For more information visit www.frontierpartisans.com.

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