James Blackburn

Dear Cook Family & Scholarship Donors, My name is James Blackburn and I will be attending Central Michigan University as a freshman this fall. I currently live near Plainwell, and graduated from the small, rural school of Martin High School, where both of my parents are teachers. I see that Mr. Cook graduated from Allegan High School, so I'm sure that some of you must be familiar with my home county. I am very excited to attend Central Michigan University. While at Central, I plan to pursue a biology major that will lead into medical school. I have also earned a spot in the Sarah R. Opperman Leadership Institute which will result in a minor in leadership. While I plan to be involved in many community service and student life activities, I am most excited to play club soccer as a Chippewa. After undergraduate work and then completing medical school, my ultimate plan is to become a family practicing physician in a rural area. Several years ago, my grandmother, who lives in a very rural area in another part of the state, was diagnosed with end-stage liver failure before she was ever diagnosed with any type of liver disease. She had often put off treatment and routine visits with her doctor because he was located almost an hour away and often had long wait times to get an appointment because his patient load was so large. I hope, as a family practitioner, that I can be part of the solution to the lack of access to healthcare in rural areas. I appreciate your awarding me the scholarship in memory of James A. Cook. With medical school in the future, I know that I have not only many years of school ahead of me, but also a potential crushing student loan debt. This award will help me avoid that future of debt. Thank you for selecting me; I appreciate the faith that you have shown in me to be a good steward of your funds. I will strive to make you proud and be an exceptional representative of what this scholarship stands for. James Blackburn Fire Up Chips!