Roosevelt Memorial Healthcare Foundation Announces Scholarship Recipient

Walking down the hallway of Culbertson High School, the sound of a 9-1-1 dispatch voice chirps from a radio attached to Hannah Bawden's hip. As a high school senior, she has taken on more responsibility than most. Aside from carrying a cumulative 4.0 grade-point-average, 18-year-old Bawden has served as a volunteer Emergency Medical Technician since last year for Roosevelt Medical Center's ambulance service.

Her passion for the medical field, her exceptional grades, curriculum path and volunteerism are some of the many reasons she was selected by the Roosevelt Memorial Healthcare Foundation as this year's $1,000 scholarship recipient.

"The Foundation Committee has always viewed this scholarship as a great opportunity to enhance healthcare in our area. It is always our hope that students will return to the area to practice in their chosen fields, but we support their endeavors wherever their career takes them," said Jennifer Kessner, Chief Financial Officer for RMHF.

Bawden is currently enrolled at Montana State University at Bozeman and will begin in the fall. Her course of study is through the University's Pre-Med In-Take Program. During her sophomore year, she will declare an area of focus.

She said that, although her focus could change, she plans to become an emergency room physician. "I've never imagined myself doing anything else. I like the fast pace of the ER and the fact that every situation is so unique and challenging. I feel I will be able to set myself to the task at hand and work through the pressure of those chaotic and critical situations," she said.

This summer she plans to join the ambulance services in Bozeman and work at a healthcare facility while beginning her studies.

During Bawden's high school career she has been a member of the National Honor Society, speech and drama, band and choir. She has also served as a math tutor and volunteered as a judge for the science fair her junior and senior years.

Every year she has competed at the Science Olympiad held in Bozeman, and received second-place her senior year in Disease Detectives and sixth-place in Anatomy and Physiology. She also competed annually at the Academic Olympics.

She worked as a nurse's aide during the summer of 2013 at RMC, learning some of the basics of direct patient care.

Bawden cites her parents as her inspiration for wanting to pursue a career in the medical field. Her mother, Elaine has been a nurse for 34 years and her dad, Bob, worked as a medical corpsman for the United States Navy aboard the Dwight David Eisenhower carrier ship and as a surgical technician in Billings.

"Hannah has wanted to be a doctor of some kind for as long as I can remember. In her elementary school years she wrote an essay about wanting to be a doctor and how she wanted to cure diseases like cancer. It has truly always been her passion," said Elaine Bawden.

The scholarship funds will be given directly to the university in two $500 installments during the first and second semesters of her freshman year. With this scholarship included, RMHF has given $4,000 in scholarship funds for students pursuing a career in healthcare.

"I am so grateful to be given this opportunity. I have enjoyed every moment and experience I have had in healthcare and I look forward to advancing my education with the ultimate aspiration of becoming a physician," Hannah Bawden said.