GlobeMed Senior Speeches (2 of 3) - Katie Schmidt
by Ashley Hagaman on March 11, 2010
At Michigan's student organization fair in the fall of my freshman year, I was drawn to a poster about a student group's partnership with the Joy-Southfield Health and Education Center in Detroit. Growing up just outside the city's borders, I had seen health disparities firsthand. While my opportunities were virtually boundless, communities just four miles away from my house were limited to unhealthy food choices, sub-par public schools, and primary care at the emergency room. I had occasionally volunteered at a soup kitchen, but never felt empowered make a real difference when these communities were so under-resourced. So when I heard about Joy-Southfield's real impact with health programs, I wanted to become involved. The Global Medical Relief Program had just begun its partnership with Joy-Southfield, and I figured I would give this new "global health" thing a try. At first, Joy-Southfield was the only reason I stayed involved, since back then, we were just a run-of-the-mill student group. Luckily, all of that changed in the winter of 2007, when we attended the first ever GlobeMed Global Health Summit. The Summit fell during spring break, so although Ashley Hagaman and I were the only Umich members there, we hoped to bring some valuable lessons back to our chapter.
I entered the Summit unsure of my purpose, but left Evanston inspired to push harder for social justice. I still vividly recall images of those three inspiring days and those tear-jerking lectures from Mardge Cohen and Joia Mukherjee. The most powerful aspect of the Summit, however, didn't involve global health experts; it involved 40 students stuffed in a small room, discussing GlobeMed's future. We did not pretend to know the solutions to global health problems; heck, we didn't even know what GlobeMed's mission statement should be. However, what we did know was that we belonged to a network of young, passionate students that could really make a difference in the world. Though I had an elementary knowledge of global health, that fire in everyone's eyes gave me the motivation to become a leader, and I resolved to have a larger role in our chapter's success. When our exec board elections rolled around, I intended to run for secretary, but Ashley recommended that I run for VICE PRESIDENT. I was stunned. Me? Vice president?!?! I was a freshman, for goodness' sake! But Ashley, who would become president, knew that a strong leadership role would engage me as a lifetime advocate for health equity, and that is exactly what happened.
In the years that followed, GlobeMed changed so much that I almost forgot what the Global Medical Relief Program had been. We acquired a second partner, called the Mali Health Organizing Project, for which we decided to hold a benefit dinner. I, a nineteen-year-old rookie event planner, was put in charge of the dinner, and I was scared. But I soon discovered that I was not alone. I had all of the Umich members to help me out, I had Ashley's guidance, and importantly, I had the National Office for support. We roughed some major challenges, but Victor and Peter always answered the phone when we called for help, encouraging us to remain positive. In the end, we overshot our goal, funding all of the equipment costs for MHOP's new health clinic. At that point, I knew that our passion wasn't naïve, that we really could advance health equity throughout the world. And I knew that I, who had previously felt so helpless in the face of injustice, could be a leader in this movement.
While every GlobeMed member in the country is privileged to belong to this network, I feel especially blessed to be part of Michigan's chapter. Through all of GlobeMed's changes, one thing that has remained constant is the inspiration provided by Joy-Southfield. In a place where diabetes had been a life sentence, where fresh produce required a 40-minute bus ride, and where a sinus infection entailed a hospital visit, people were healthy because of the healthcare, education, and, most importantly, respect provided by Joy-Southfield's staff. All I had known growing up was Detroit's sad demise, but GlobeMed and Joy-Southfield showed me that Detroit was actually full of hope. While distributing surveys for the Center's health education needs assessment, I had the privilege of interacting with church and school leaders. Their passion for uplifting the community showed me the potential in urban neighborhoods, and inspired me to work toward realizing this potential for the rest of my life.
Since May of 2008, I have been co-president of my GlobeMed chapter, and it hasn't been easy. The graduation of a strong senior class left us with few dedicated members. Our 2009 campaign wasn't as successful as we had hoped, and we ended the year with only four returning members for fall 2009. Luckily, I spent my summer as an intern for the GlobeMed National Office and devoted ten weeks to strengthening the network. The internship forced me to become a better leader, since I was giving leadership advice to Exec Board members across the country. I realized that I needed to do a better job of engaging younger members, of giving them opportunities for leadership, just as Ashley had done for me. And I was determined that for this school year, above anything else, I would leave the chapter in a stronger state than it was when I inherited it.
I'm not going to tell you that everything went as planned in this past academic year-in fact, we scrapped most of our plans we changed partners last fall. Jeremy and I have done our best, but we're still learning how to lead. We've made some poor decisions, revised strategies, and will probably scramble to complete forgotten tasks for our upcoming benefit dinner. However, standing here in front my chapter and the rest of you, I am overwhelmed with pride. This is the second weekend of spring break, just as it had been when Ashley and I were the lone Umich representatives here in 2007. Except this year, we have 10 bright faces here from our chapter, eight of whom joined this past fall. Because of Jeremy's and my hard work, and because of the support we've received from the National Office, our members are fully engaged, and I am confident that they will push for more success after I graduate.
These past four years have comprised the defining period in my life. Through GlobeMed, I've found a voice, since I've been able to have a real impact on the injustice that I see in the world. I've found a passion, as I will constantly push for social justice and health equity. And I've found a career in health education and primary care that will empower communities like the one just four miles from my house. Despite this personal enlightenment, however, what I am the most proud of, the most grateful for, is the enthusiasm that I can feel in this room. Your nine bright faces [gesture to chapter], and your 150 [gesture to rest of room], show even more passion for global health equity than I saw in those original Summit attendees. I know that I will work for social justice for the rest of my life, but my accomplishments pale in comparison to what we will all do together.
Moving forward, I challenge you to make the most of this overwhelming passion in your eyes. I was inspired to become a leader by those 40 original Summit participants with few resources and little experience, so just imagine what you can do now. If your campaigns are wildly successful, double your goal for next year. If a globalhealthU event rocks your campus, resolve to rock the entire city next time. And, most importantly, no matter how great your chapter is, always push to further engage yourself, your fellow staff members, and everyone around you. If I come back for next year's Summit, show me the new members you've engaged. Though I would love to see you all again, I challenge you to give new attendees this life-changing experience. If we keep inspiring young members, if we keep pushing to improve, then nothing can stop us. Every year, we will have a stronger crop of GlobeMed alumni working in various sectors, all pushing for global health equity. All 160 of us will do great things as individuals, but it is only as a network, constantly engaging more leaders, that we will really be the change. Though I have grown immensely in the past for years, though I've toiled nonstop to fulfill my individual responsibilities, my greatest accomplishment is leaving my chapter's members equipped to become better leaders than I am, and I challenge you to do the same.
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