Corey Taylor Tindall was an exceptionally bright, artistic, dedicated and determined young woman of 16 entering her junior year at South Anchorage High School at the time of her tragic death.
Beginning in elementary school (attending the gifted program IGNITE, all through middle school), she had stated a preference for a career in medicine. This preference became more pronounced during middle school and was a commitment by high school. By her sophomore year, she had begun trying to aim her classes and extracurricular activities toward admission to Stanford, which she had already visited (along with Harvard and Penn State). Corey was passionate about learning and pushed herself past what was expected of her—from her parents and her teachers. She always “went for the extra credit” and did so with flair. She started projects/school work on Fridays after school, even when the project wasn’t due for a week or two. She was diligent about her school work and she regularly called upon us to quiz her on various subjects. We weren’t allowed to stop quizzing her until she was satisfied that not only was she proficient with the subject matter, but she could answer any question on the subject forwards, backwards, sideways and in her sleep. Corey was determined to go to Stanford to study medicine. She talked about it constantly with family and friends and had the opportunity to visit Stanford last year. Corey and I had many, many conversations about the profession she intended to pursue, and other goals and interests. She absolutely wanted to be the best at what she did and medicine was her goal. We spoke about what type of medicine she was interested in. We talked general medicine (internist) to neurology. Though she hadn’t made a decision on the specialty she was going to pursue, she was determined to become a surgeon. She thought being a “general MD” wouldn’t challenge her enough. Corey would have been an exceptional surgeon and of that there can be no doubt. During her freshman year, she began Debate Drama & Forensics (DDF), while simultaneously swimming on the swim team. She continued both during her sophomore year while maintaining her 4.0 GPA (which she had maintained unceasingly since her first letter grades in elementary school). This involved going to both extra-curricular activities - - often on the same days going back and forth between the pool at Service and South High School DDF practice. She had applied and been accepted to Brown University’s summer program to attend one of their highly regarded programs for students determined to study medicine. She deferred attending this year until what would have been the summer of her junior year, so as to be able to travel Europe for 6 weeks. She had completed training at Providence Hospital as a Volunteer in the Neo-natal Intensive Care Unit (“NICU”) and had just completed her first solo shift on the 5th of August, 2010. She died August 9. She also played the violin and was learning guitar. Her DDF achievements are attached on Exhibit A. Her career path was extremely focused for one her age. |