Making a Difference: How ICOM Medical Students Are Impacting Their Community

It started out with this email: "Hi! A group of us from Idaho College of Osteopathic Medicine raised $2,000 that we'd like to donate. Can you give me a call or email me? Eamon"

Upavan Brar (standing), Eamon Kalafchi (left), and Sukhpreet Badesha driving

Our SW Boise Days for Girls team had donated washable and disposable menstrual products to ICOM a year ago, but the medical students graduated and we lost touch. So this email from Eamon was exciting and I contacted him right away.

In a nutshell, this amazing group of medical students (5 are now doctors and Eamon is graduating in March) spontaneously decided to fundraise money they wanted to donate locally, and they wanted to know more about us. After emailing and talking on the phone, and then Eamon talking to his group about what our team does, they decided to donate their entire fundraising amount of $5,000+ for us to donate back to local communities in need.

Nahleh Koochak

Their only request? That they would "appreciate if at least some of the funds were put toward impoverished communities outside" of our school project. We are already working to find local communities we can support that fit that request.

These students from different states "just got lucky enough to be accepted at ICOM" and they "wanted to give back to the community that was responsible for our education." Since their school was ICOM, they "wanted to make sure to focus on Idaho's health."

It's hard to write dispassionately about such generosity when you stop and think that these doctors raised money while juggling studies, classes, tests, deciding their futures and living their lives. Our team cannot begin to express the gratitude we feel for this act of kindness and compassion.

Selfishly, I hope that maybe some of them decide to remain in Idaho.

Thank you Eamon, Upavan, Sukhpreet, Nahleh, Andy and Mason.

Andy Diep and Mason Jackson