I’ve always been curious about how we Americans define success. Many people go right to a bank balance. In athletics it’s natural to be drawn toward trophies, both team and individual. Nowadays there are people called influencers but I honestly don’t know how to quantify their so called achievements. But what if genuine success is about chasing and catching dreams? What if we measured success by its benefit to others instead of by being famous, brash, or rich? To dig a little deeper on this subject, I sought out a panel of experts on achieving personal success in a manner that ripples throughout an entire community, and I didn’t have to look any further than three fairly recent graduates of Siren High School: Dr. Matthew Larson, class of 2013; Dr. Hattie Koball, class of 2015; and Dr. Aubrey Larson, class of 2016.
These three Siren natives have completed their undergraduate studies in hard sciences and met the challenge of not only acceptance into medical school but actual completion. Now, all three are in their residencies in hospitals around the country. Matt is in Erie, Pennsylvania, where he is one of three orthopedic surgery residents. Hattie is in Salt Lake City, Utah, and will begin her residency in family medicine next month. And the kid in the group, 26-year-old Aubrey, is specializing in internal medicine, serving in a veterans hospital in Iowa City.
I reached out to each of them and quickly learned that residency as a newly frocked medical doctor is as intense as portrayed on countless TV dramas and movies, minus the sultry romance. Each of them took time out of their schedules to talk with me, Matt and Hattie after long, exhausting shifts. I caught Aubrey between patients. These young professionals graciously answered my intrusive questions about what led to their personal achievements and, now that they have nearly completed their crucibles, what lies ahead.
Pushing 30 years of age, Matt is the senior member of this dynamic trio. I caught up with him between shifts at University of Pittsburg Medical Center-Hamot. When I asked him about how he went from a town of 800 to a hospital with over 600 doctors and 4,000 employees, he explained it began with his lifelong interest in science.
After graduating from Siren High, Matt headed off to UW-Madison, imagining a career in the DNR as a conservation biologist. He admits that coming from a small town to a Big-10 school, he might’ve had a bit of a chip on his shoulder. Perhaps that’s what led him to switch from the already arduous challenge of a major in biology to biochemistry. Even though that meant an extra year of undergraduate studies, it would prepare him for his new professional goal: orthopedic surgeon.
After five years of medical school, Matt is now finishing his first year of a 5-year residency at UPMC-Hamot. Asked to describe an average day at work, he ticked off duties from complex traumas and minor surgeries in the ER to treating senior citizens with arthritis.
Now that he is settling into his medical career, Matt says he appreciates the benefit of small-town life.
“As you grow up and reflect back, you see there was a lot of support from people in the community. It’s the connections you make; driving down the road, you see someone who needs their leaves raked or just someone who needs a hand. In a place like Siren, you go out of your way to take care of them.”
Dr. Hattie Koball and I talked while she was on her way home from a day of seeing patients in Salt Lake City. At Siren High, Hattie graduated at the top of her class of 31. Her mom told me she was valedictorian. Hattie failed to mention it, but she couldn’t say enough about her K-12 years at Siren schools.
“Teachers at Siren were always emphasizing that students should pursue their own passions. I always felt so supported. Each student was treated as their own person.”
Hattie completed her undergraduate degree in biology at the University of Nebraska and will graduate from Rocky Vista Medical School on May 10. She intends to specialize in family medicine, and she is off to an impressive start, having already participated in the delivery of a few dozen babies. She will complete her residency at Saint Mark’s, a hospital with a 150-year history that delivers 2,000 babies a year. Time spent in one of the fastest-growing metropolises in the country hasn’t caused her to forget her small-town midwestern roots. For Hattie, being away from home and family has been one of her biggest challenges.
During the many difficult days of medical school, Hattie knew she would never allow herself to give up. She would always push herself to the limit. She found strength and perseverance by staying in touch with friends and family who she said were her biggest cheerleaders.
“Growing up in a smaller community, it’s like family. I can’t believe all the people that still reach out and encourage me.”
With her love of small-town living and passion for family medicine, Hattie doesn’t rule out a possible return.
“I’m open to whatever opportunities come my way, but I’d definitely like to one day work in an underserved area in a smaller population like where I grew up.”
When I spoke to Dr. Aubrey Larson (Matt’s younger sister by 3 years), she was on a short break from her duties working with veterans in Iowa City.
After graduating from Siren High, Aubrey headed off to Iowa State University, where her initial plans were to study botany. She laughed when she thought back on her first experience of culture shock: a freshman dorm that housed more students than the population of Siren.
Putting her accomplishments aside, Aubrey spoke with great affection for her hometown.
“Growing up in Siren really transformed how I view the world, how I find so much solace in community. It truly takes a village to raise people, and I am just so grateful for my village of Siren. I definitely couldn’t have done it alone.”
Aubrey reminisced about playing on the Blizzard hockey team and being part of the band and choir led by Mrs. Anderson. She remembered Wayne Koball, her track coach and math teacher, as one of her many mentors. Aubrey said there was this other teacher, Mr. Richard Larson, who was especially influential on her and her brother both at school and at home.
“I had a really strong group of people behind me that were always believing in me fiercely.”
Aubrey graduated from the Wisconsin School of Medicine-Green Bay, class of 2024. She is now a resident doctor of internal medicine, and she hopes to specialize even further in the areas of hematology and oncology.
Like her lifelong friend, Hattie Koball and her big brother Matt, Aubrey is guided by her sense of community.
“Rural medicine has a really special place in my heart, especially coming from such a small town and seeing patients who have to drive two or three hours to seek any sort of specialized care. That’s something I would like to be able to change.”
During her medical training, Aubrey was often cautioned about being overly sensitive, but what she sees as her “big heart” is the very thing she wants to carry into the hospital every day.
“At the end of the day, my job is to listen deeply and care completely for my patients. It’s the least any of us can do.”
I asked Aubrey what it was like to serve in a veterans hospital, and when she answered I could hear the emotion along with the joy in her voice.
“I’m looking down through a window right now at all the people coming and going. I’m just so honored that I get to serve them.”
In speaking with these young doctors, I was struck by the humility and gratitude each of them expressed. Not one of them boasted about their individual accolades, and all of them credited the support of family and community that made their achievements possible. When I spoke with their parents, teachers, and longtime associates, Wayne Koball, former teacher and principal at Siren High and Hattie’s dad, summed it up best.
“I truly feel their success is ours, as a community. Kids like that don’t just happen or grow up in a vacuum. Siren raised them. We all had a hand in their success.”
In the end, I suppose a precise definition of success will always be a matter of interpretation, maybe even a question of personal values. But one thing is clear. When looking for success achieved through the perseverance and hard work of individuals nourished by the strength of a loving community, we don’t need to look any further than these three Dragons of Siren High.