On Thursday, Nov. 30, Quillen’s Organization of Student Representatives hosted the sixth annual chili cook-off in Stanton-Gerber Hall to benefit the Willow Unit at Woodridge Hospital.
The OSR welcomed over 100 attendees at the cook-off and raised over $500 for the children at Woodridge.
The event started six years ago when a former medical student visited the children’s wing of the Woodridge hospital called the Willow Unit. She saw that around the holidays, the children didn’t have toys; the rooms weren’t decorated, and it just didn’t feel like Christmas. She relayed what she saw to the OSR and ever since, a chili cook-off fundraiser is held to combat this need.
Lawrence Parawan, a first-year medical student, was elected alongside Brooke Baxter to represent this year’s freshmen class at Quillen. Parawan and Baxter were at the forefront of making this year’s chili cook-off happen.
“We thought it’d be a great idea for people to come together—make chili—people pay to taste and eat a bowl, and then we use the money to buy Christmas presents for the kids at the Willow Unit,” Parawan said.
Choosing a career in medicine is choosing to serve others and to make other’s lives better however you can. ETSU’s College of Medicine makes sure that this ideal is instilled in every student. While earning a medical degree at ETSU is a rigorous, time-consuming and incredibly stressful feat, it is also a place where helping others is a part of the tradition.
“As medical students, they stress to us about building professionalism and what it means to be a professional,” said Parawan. “A big component that our mentors and faculty and staff stress is community service and giving back to your community and helping. We’re all busy; we’re taking tests. The faculty are busy; they are making tests. But it is great that we can all come together on a wet Thursday. afternoon and raise some money for a good cause.”
The OSR also awarded prizes for various participants in the cook-off. The Best in Show award went to Jacquie Zimmerman, Best Traditional Chili went to Jared Rhinehardt, Best Non-Traditional Chili went to Kristen Holst and Best Vegetarian Chili went to Lawrence Parawan.
