Milton Hershey School Senior Excited to Help Others through Career in Medicine

 Khloe Walker, MHS Senior

My family loves my sister. She was born on a Friday in October. She weighed just over 5 pounds and has a birth defect that causes her left leg to be half the length of the right. I was born on the same day, exactly five years later. My family spent most of my life in the hospital watching over my sister. I’ve slept on hospital beds, couches, and chairs, listening to the steady beep of a dozen machines I couldn’t possibly pronounce. I’ve seen the precision and compassion of the doctors, even when they didn’t see me, and I’ve witnessed the love they had for my sister.

Early Struggles

My mom always told me that my sister needed extra love because her leg would limit her. She would never ride a bike, or join the swim team, or do a cartwheel, but even though my legs were fine, I couldn’t do those things either.

There was no one there to teach me.

I taught myself how to make breakfast in the early mornings when mom had to work. Nights my sister had to stay at the hospital, I learned long division alone at the table. I tied my shoes, braided my hair, and walked to the bus stop by myself. And when I visited her in her hospital room, I wasn’t angry at her, or upset, or jealous. I understood, back then, that life was unfair, but it was especially unfair to my older sister. I’m happy that my family loves her, because she needs it, it just meant that there was less love left for me, and that was okay.

It’s okay that my sister’s birthday cake was bigger than mine because she’s older. It’s okay that my friend couldn’t come over and play because my sister didn’t like the noise. It’s okay that no one noticed I got an A on my quiz because she worked hard to get a B on hers.

Opportunity at MHS

Then, a few months after my 12th birthday, while on a field trip to Hersheypark, I saw the castle on the hill (Catherine Hall) and learned about all the opportunities I could have at Milton Hershey School. My mom submitted an application for me, and I was accepted!

Suddenly, I didn’t have to wake up early to make breakfast because my houseparent did that. I no longer did homework alone at the table, but instead with 11 other, chatty, preteen girls. I still tied my own shoes, but my houseparent braided my hair, drove me to school, and taped my tests to the fridge, no matter the grade. The clothes I wore belonged solely to me, and I no longer slept on hospital couches or chairs, but in my own bed. I danced and played, cooked, and talked with 11 girls who cared about me. Teachers believed in my potential. Houseparents who just believed in me.

I am not alone anymore.

MHS loves me. I feel it when I hang out with my friends. My houseparents care for my student home, and I hear love in the gentle way my teachers encourage me to do the best I can. I am loved by my mentors, my houseparents, my friends, my teachers, my coaches, and my advisors.

And I love them, too.

Exciting Future

Later this fall, I will enter my final year of school. When I was asked what career path I’ll follow after I leave, I thought of those doctors from so long ago who treated my family with the kindness we desperately needed. I remembered the coursework I was given at MHS, and the hours spent memorizing anatomical structures. I thought of the internship I completed at Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center last summer, where I worked alongside experts in their fields, and I knew then I wanted to be a doctor.

I want to help someone the way those doctors helped my sister. The same way MHS helped me.

MHS changed my life and has room for more kids like me. I can’t wait to hear about how a child in your life benefited from this exceptional school.