Thinking back on the beginnings of my HOSA journey brings back a mix of so many emotions. It is crazy to think of how far I have come since 2003. As long as I can remember I have wanted to have a career in healthcare. 2003 was my first year of middle school and coincidently, my mom also began teaching Healthcare Science courses at our local high school that same year. Being so interested in healthcare and science, I thought this was the coolest thing ever! I got to help her organize and plan most of our local events like blood drives and fundraisers. Hanging out with the members of our high school chapter made me feel like I was a part of something! At the time, I couldn’t join HOSA so I was always just hanging around and helping out at our local meetings and couldn’t wait until I could join.

When the time came for me to enter high school I was finally able to be actively involved! I was so excited to see where this would take me. My freshman year I was able to attend my first Fall Leadership Conference in Jekyll Island, compete at our State Leadership Conference in Athens in Creative Problem Solving, and make it all the way to the National Leadership Conference in Orlando, Florida! In my first year as an active member I was able to make so many new friends and finally see the bigger picture. Going to NLC was the first time I could actually comprehend how big HOSA was. Granted, the attendance at NLC now is much, much larger, I thought there was no way we could fit anymore people at the time! My sophomore year of high school I decided to run to become our local chapter president. Much to my surprise, I was elected and spent the year learning and growing as a leader. However I felt like I needed to give more. In researching and speaking with some other members I decided to run for state office and was elected as the Postsecondary Vice-President of Georgia HOSA. At the time, I thought HOSA had given so much to me and molded me with such important values such as teamwork, servant leadership, and commitment. I had no clue how much more I would gain over the next three years. I went on to be elected the following year as President-Elect and served as the President of Georgia HOSA my freshman year of college. My years as a state officer were full of such incredible memories, lifelong friendships, and irreplaceable experiences. Without a doubt, these experiences and life lessons have molded me into the person I am today.

When applying to college, HOSA gave me the skills to do things that high school doesn’t always teach you, such as properly filling out a resume, how to dress for an interview, how and when to write thank you letters, etc. Going into nursing school, I was beyond prepared with my prior time management skills making the transition into our program easier on me than many other students. When “real life” came and it was time to apply for jobs I was able to rely on many of the skills HOSA taught me to prepare myself. I knew how to conduct myself during an interview, how to carry on a meaningful conversation with strangers, and how to mentally prepare for the many changes that were ahead of me. In fact, during my interview one of the members of the panel saw on my resume about my history with HOSA. That quickly became the topic of conversation and a great icebreaker. She spent a good ten minutes telling the rest of the panel what HOSA was, what I did through HOSA, what they teach their members, etc. I can’t tell you how much relief that brought me! Someone recognized the value in the training and time I had put forth and wanted to make sure that the rest of the interview panel knew how important it was! When writing my resume, I had debated not writing about my HOSA experience as they tell you to keep it recent and college related. However, a little voice was telling me that I needed to be proud of what I had the opportunity to learn and man am I glad I added it! I feel as though it made me stand out among the other candidates and made my interview memorable to the panel. I think it played a huge role in me getting the job! I am now continuing my HOSA journey as I work as a labor and delivery nurse in Athens, GA and continue to volunteer with Georgia HOSA.

I am often asked if I think being involved in HOSA was helpful to get me to where I am today- the answer is always 110% without a doubt YES! I could talk all day about all the things I learned over the years such as public speaking techniques or how to properly shake hands but I think the most important thing I learned in all my years as a HOSA member was what it means to be a servant leader. Being a leader is so much more than a title or a position. It’s about serving others and doing what is best for the members, it’s about putting others ahead of yourself and not being afraid to get your hands dirty to help your team be successful. No matter where life takes you, everyone will have a time where they need to step up and be a leader. It’s important that we realize the difference in what it means to be a leader and what it means to have a title.

Whitney Wilkes

HOSA Alumni

Labor and Delivery Nurse