Sky Ridge Medical Center Announces Student Scholarship Award Winners

Lone Tree, CO, May 30, 2021 --(PR.com)-- Sky Ridge Medical Center awarded student volunteers pursuing academic degrees and careers in healthcare with its Sky Ridge Student Scholarship awards for the second year. The $5,000 in scholarships were awarded among four seniors based upon their length of service and commitment as student volunteers at Sky Ridge, a 3.5+ GPA and evidence of a strong interest in a future healthcare career.

The recipients of the 2021 scholarships are:

Taylor Sabato from Arapahoe High School, attending University of Georgia
Reese Titensor from Rock Canyon High School, attending University of Florida
Abigail Holbrook from Arapahoe High School, attending Ohio University

Madison Merritt from Rock Canyon High School, attending Baylor University

“These students have dedicated more than 2,100 hours throughout their high school careers and have taken on impressive leadership roles in our program. I have been impressed by their passion for healthcare and desire to excel in our industry,” said John Penn, Director of Volunteers at Sky Ridge Medical Center.

Taylor joined the Sky Ridge student volunteer program as an 8th grader and has since rotated through seven departments. She quickly became the lead volunteer trainer in the NICU and Pediatric Emergency Department.

Taylor shared about her experience saying, “I began volunteering at Sky Ridge Medical Center with little idea as to what I wanted to do in my future. Almost immediately, I realized a future in healthcare was for me and my position at Sky Ridge led me to discover my passion for emergency medicine.”

Reese started volunteering as a freshman and has been with the program for more than three years. She has rotated through six departments and served as the lead trainer on the Medical/Surgery, Oncology floor and in Main Pre-Op & PACU.

As part of Reese’s future career plans she stated, “In college, I want to work in a research lab and in my professional life, I want to conduct clinical trial research and become an orthopedic surgeon. I have a strong passion for this career and know that no matter if my life follows this plan or not, helping others in a healthcare career brings me happiness and is something I want to do for the rest of my life.”

Abigail began volunteering in the 8th grade. She has rotated through six departments and has spent extensive time in our Pre-Op and PACU and surgery waiting room. This year, she was selected to launch a new volunteer support role with Respiratory Therapy.

Abigail shared about her experience, “My favorite activity at Sky Ridge is definitely the observation opportunities, and more specifically watching surgeries. These observations have taught me so much about a variety of careers and opportunities available in a hospital and medical field – more than any job description or pamphlet could. In shadowing Dr. James, he knew I loved the concept of surgery and really enjoyed being in the operating room, he walked me through every step of two procedures. I learned more than I could have imagined from both of these observation experiences, but I also had a lot of fun with the techs, nurses and surgeons that I got to meet.”

Madison started volunteering her freshman year and has rotated through five departments. She was our lead trainer on our medical floor for nearly a year and trained in the Pre-OP and PACU. With her journalism background and strong interest in cardiology, she has written more than 40 pages of clinical essays from her experience in the Cardiac Cath Lab.

Madison shred about her future career plans saying, “At the moment, I plan to be an interventional cardiologist or acute care nurse with a doctorate in nursing practice and specialization in cardiology. I know I want to work in a hospital because through volunteering at Sky Ridge I have absolutely fallen in love with the hospital environment.”

“The Sky Ridge student volunteer program gives our young people a hands-on experience and the opportunity to learn about the many facets of healthcare,” said Kirk McCarty, CEO of Sky Ridge Medical Center. “These students have an inspiring drive and it has been such an honor to get to know them and play a small role in their bright futures.”

Sky Ridge Medical Center, the first hospital to open in Douglas County in 2003, is a Level II Trauma Center and an acute care hospital with 284 licensed beds. A member of the HealthONE network, Sky Ridge is a destination hospital with a reputation for clinical excellence and world-class service offering compassionate care through patient-centered programs such as a comprehensive Cancer Center, adult and pediatric ER services, an award-winning Birth Place and a state of the art Spine and Total Joint Center.

HCA Healthcare’s Continental Division, which includes HealthONE and Sky Ridge, was named the #1 large hospital system in the United States by IBM Watson Health as part of the 15 Top Health Systems recognition process. And, as the #7 corporate philanthropist in the Denver-metro area, and the only hospital system in the top 10, HealthONE contributed more than $1.6 million in 2019 and supports over 150 organizations through cash and in-kind donations. Additional information is available at HealthONEcares.com/SkyRidge.