Speech by Kelly and Dianne at The University of Calgary School of Medicine Convocation 2009

The medical class of 2009 has graduated! We are so incredibly proud of all of you! Over the past 3 years we have learned many things. We learned that the U of C faculty and staff are first class and we thank them for their support of both ourselves and their students. We also learned that this class is full of outstanding individuals. They are supremely intelligent but that is coupled with the very human qualities of caring, compassion and generosity. We are confident that our generation will be well cared for as we have already witnessed and experienced first hand the healing abilities of these physicians. Thank you for your love and support, the letters, E-mails, phone calls and visits, the messages on Lindsay’s website, the beautiful memory books, the hockey tournament, the support of Lindsay’s foundation and especially the hugs.

Ten years ago tomorrow, Lindsay stood before her graduating high school class of 1999 as valedictorian and spoke about a phrase pertaining to the fragility of life – Carpe Diem translated to Seize the Day. She said we need to live life to the fullest, savoring each moment. We should embrace every opportunity that we encounter because it may never come our way again. We need to strive to live our lives so that when our time has come, we can leave happily knowing that we accomplished everything we could in our short time on Earth.

Lindsay not only spoke those words, she lived them. And so tonight we celebrate accomplishment. We celebrate the class of 2009’s accomplishment and we look forward to hearing about your future successes as you begin residency. We celebrate the faculty and staff’s accomplishment in taking this group of med school neophytes and turning them into the doctors of tomorrow. We celebrate friends and family as nothing in this life is more important. And we celebrate Lindsay, she was so blessed to be part of this family, the family of the class of 2009. We are so proud of you all!

Tonight we are honored to present the first annual Dr. Lindsay Leigh Kimmett Prize in Emergency Medicine. Allow me to briefly explain our decision to establish this award.

Lindsay grew up in a health care profession oriented home and from an early age she absorbed what she heard. As a young child, she would describe her symptoms in vocabulary beyond her years to our family physician. As a teenager and young adult working in pharmacies she very quickly learned all of those generic drug names and became as proficient as many pharmacists. While pursuing her Kinesiology degree we saw a spark ignite when she took an anatomy course and discovered how fascinating the human body is. When she entered Medical School we witnessed her flourishing. She considered a career in Orthopedics but quickly decided that and I quote “workingwith overweight people who want knee replacements” was not in her future. And so she began to focus on Emergency. We were certain that she had found her passion when she worked extra shifts in the department just because she loved it. There is no doubt in our minds that Lindsay would have excelled in the field!

And so we celebrate Lindsay with the creation of this prize. We are proud to say that we will still know Emergency physicians. Our sincere congratulations to the 3 members of this class of 2009 who matched to Emergency. We wish that there was a prize for each of you. The very first winner Of the Dr. Lindsay Leigh Kimmett Prize in Emergency Medicine from the class of 2009 is Dr. Meira Louis!

The Dr. Lindsay Leigh Kimmett Prize In Emergency Medicine Winners

UNIVERSITY OF CALGARY

The Board of Governors of the University of Calgary (the “University”) is pleased to accept the generous offer of a gift of $12,625 from The Lindsay Leigh Kimmett Memorial Foundation administered by the Calgary Foundation (the “Donor”).

The Dr. Lindsay Leigh Kimmett Prize in Emergency Medicine

Lindsay Kimmett was completing her second year of Medical school when she was tragically killed in a motor vehicle incident in February of 2008. Lindsay was passionate about Medicine and had chosen Emergency Medicine as her career goal. There is no doubt in our minds that Lindsay would have excelled in the field. She was ambitious and coupled her intelligence with a tenacious work ethic. She had a calm demeanor which would have been a huge asset in coping with the hectic pace of an Emergency Room. Lindsay was compassionate and would have treated patients, their families and fellow staff with grace and dignity. She recognized that in an Emergency setting you could truly make a difference in patients’ lives, loved the opportunity to learn continuously and was keen to excel at medical procedures. Lindsay was also balanced and outside of the hospital setting very much enjoyed life and embraced her world. We, as Lindsay’s family, have a great desire to carry on her legacy and sincerely hope that this prize will assist the recipient to move forward in their pursuit of becoming an Emergency Physician.

Faculty: Medicine

Field of Studies: Emergency Medicine

Value: $2,525.00

Lindsay Kimmett Eligibility:

Offered annually to graduating students in an Emergency Medicine program in the Faculty of Medicine.

Based on academic merit

Preference will be given to students who show Exceptional leadership activities and involvement in the Athletics program.

Where Tenable: University of Calgary

Apply: Student Awards online application, along with an essay describing their interest in Emergency Medicine.

About Lindsay Leigh Kimmett

Lindsay Kimmett attended Cochrane, Alberta schools from Kindergarten through Grade 12 and was the Valedictorian of the Cochrane High School graduating class of 1999. She continued her academic journey by earning a Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology with Distinction degree from the University of Calgary. While studying for this degree, a spark was lit while taking an Anatomy course. She discovered that the human body is fascinating. After graduating, she worked briefly, travelled extensively and when she decided that Medicine was indeed what she wanted, she single-handedly set about studying for her MCAT exams. She scored in the 99.7 – 99.8 percentile – a testament to her focused concentration. After acceptance into the University of Calgary Medical School, it was obvious that she was flourishing! She was able to successfully meet the requirements of the Medical School curriculum while at the same time embracing a love of life. She had a large circle of friends and always made time to enjoy their company. She was an avid hockey fan and player and to that end took it upon herself to educate the Macaques female hockey team about the game – be that the order of putting on equipment or what an offside was. She had traveled extensively – her goal was to visit as many countries as her age. She was 26 when she passed away as a seat-belted passenger in a single vehicle rollover. At that point she had visited 25 countries including a summer between first and second year medical school spent in Tanzania with fellow students. After their postings in various hospitals, she summitted Mt. Kilimanjaro and enjoyed an African safari. One of Lindsay’s favorite sayings was a quote by St. Augustine. “The world is a book and those that don’t travel read only a page.” Lindsay truly believed this and was very aware of the global community. The motto at Cochrane High School is “Carpe Diem – Seize the Day.” Lindsay quoted this in her address. She stated that we need to live life to the fullest and savour every moment. That is exactly how she chose to live her life. To learn more about Lindsay, her life, and her memorial foundation please visit her website at www.lindsaykimmett.net

The Lindsay Leigh Kimmett Memorial Foundation has been established to carry on Lindsay’s legacy of love and caring. We truly hope that the prize from her foundation will assist the recipient to “Seize the Day”