When I first met Mighty Mouse, a 15-week-old kitten, she looked like a bad taxidermy. Presented to my clinic by a rescue organization for unthriftiness, stiffness, and facial deformities, she weighed just 3 pounds. Euthanasia was recommended given her lack of a diagnosis, so I volunteered to foster her while our veterinary team researched. Mighty Mouse needed an advocate, and I knew too well from personal experience how much of a difference one could make. Due to language and cultural barriers, my low-income immigrant parents experienced difficulty seeking financial or legal assistance. Likewise, my community members in Koreatown Los Angeles, rarely sought medical care for themselves, much less their pets. In my youth, my family ran a 24-hour sauna, which became a safe space for our neighbors to discuss the inaccessibility we faced as immigrants. Over time, it became a place of belonging where shared hardships fostered camaraderie. Nurtured in this environment, I learned that community builders can cultivate the resilience needed to overcome systemic adversities. As a result, I developed a poignant desire to aid both the people and animals around me who suffered silently. Today, I am a third-year veterinary student at Cornell who continues to delve into spaces where ending animal suffering requires human action. By assisting laboratory animal veterinarians, I advocated for robust veterinary ethics in humane animal testing for medical advancement. By volunteering for low-cost community clinics like Paw Fund, I bridged owners, their pets’ well-being, and public health through preventative medicine. Anywhere I volunteered or worked, I served as a Korean translator to increase accessibility for people like my family. Thankfully, Mighty Mouse blossomed once I stood behind her the way I stood behind my community members. Months of reviewing case studies and test after test revealed no answer as to what her congenital abnormality was, but I got into vet school, adopted her, and celebrated her first birthday. After a long 2 years and help from multiple departments at Cornell and even the University of Pennsylvania, Mouse was finally diagnosed with a rare congenital metabolic disease called Mucolipidosis. Somehow, she defied all odds and proved that a cat with her disease can live longer than the life expectancy of 7 months. Being a part of her diagnostic journey cemented my belief that I am made for this field. As a veterinarian, I aspire to create safe spaces and bridge gaps like my family did for my community. By collaborating with owners in their pet’s care, I hope to invite families into the process of the medicine I practice, regardless of their socioeconomic backgrounds. Furthermore, I hope to become a voice for the ones in the veterinary community that we often forget to advocate for: the animals without support systems, pet owners that lack access to veterinary care, the veterinarians and their staff bruised by compassion fatigue, and even my peers, who will be at the frontline of care for the influx of pandemic pets. Upon graduation, I will mentor upcoming BIPOC veterinarians to proactively support inclusivity and diversity in one of the whitest professions in America. And when it is time to retire, I plan on volunteering at local animal shelters in struggling communities through spay/neuter programs. Even though my sweet Mouse celebrated her fourth birthday this April, she likely will not be here much longer. However, with every patient I touch, every Korean owner I speak to in their mother tongue, every financially vulnerable family, and every stray animal I work with, I know she will be there with me in my heart. Her legacy will live on.

When I first met Mighty Mouse, a 15-week old kitten, she looked like a bad taxidermy. Presented to my clinic by a rescue organization for stiffness, hypotonia, and constipation, she weighed just 1.5 kg. Euthanasia was recommended given her lack of a diagnosis, so I volunteered to foster her while our veterinary team researched. Mighty Mouse needed an advocate, and I knew too well from my own struggling parents how much of a difference one could make. Due to language and cultural barriers, my low-income immigrant parents never asked for financial or legal assistance. Likewise, my community members in Koreatown Los Angeles rarely sought medical care for themselves, much less their pets. In my youth, my family ran a 24-hour sauna which was a safe space for our neighbors to discuss the neglect and mistreatment we faced as immigrants. Over time, it became a place of belonging where shared hardships fostered camaraderie. Nurtured in this environment, I learned that community builders can cultivate the resilience needed to overcome systemic adversities. As a result, I developed a poignant desire to aid both the people and animals around me who suffered wordlessly. Today, I am a first-year veterinary student at Cornell who continues to delve into spaces where ending animal suffering requires human action. By assisting laboratory animal veterinarians, I advocated for robust veterinary ethics in humane animal testing for medical advancement. At my small animal clinic, I bridged owners, their pet’s well-being, and public health together through preventative medicine. Knowing that Mighty Mouse did not have someone to guide her path towards treatment like our other patients, I could not stand idly by. While fostering, I noticed that she had retained many of her juvenile traits past the average developmental stages. After reviewing case studies for potential differentials, I convinced the rescue to authorize bloodwork to test for congenital hypothyroidism. Streamlining this affirmative outcome was exhilarating for me and cemented my belief that I am made for this field. As a veterinarian, I aspire to create safe spaces and bridge gaps like my family’s sauna did for my community. By collaborating with owners in their pet’s care, I hope to invite families into the process of the medicine I practice, regardless of their socioeconomic backgrounds. Furthermore, I hope to become a voice for the ones in the veterinary community that we often forget to advocate for: the animals without support systems, pet owners that lack access to veterinary care, the veterinarians and their staff bruised by compassion fatigue, and even my peers, who will be at the frontline of care for the influx of pandemic pets. Three years in the future, I will have graduated veterinary school and hopefully will be starting a rotating internship. Working at the small animal emergency department here at Cornell has inspired me to pursue emergency medicine and critical care as a specialty. Closer to retirement, I hope to donate my services to local animal shelters in struggling communities by assisting in spay/neuter programs. I also plan to mentor fellow upcoming BIPOC veterinarians once I have established myself in my career to proactively support inclusivity and diversity recognition in this field.

When I first met Mighty Mouse, a 15-week old kitten, she looked like a bad taxidermy. Presented to my clinic by a rescue organization for stiffness, hypotonia, and constipation, she weighed just 1.5 kg. Euthanasia was recommended given her lack of a diagnosis, so I volunteered to foster her while our veterinary team researched. Mighty Mouse needed an advocate, and I knew too well from my own struggling parents how much of a difference one could make. Due to language and cultural barriers, my low-income immigrant parents never asked for financial or legal assistance. Likewise, my community members in Koreatown Los Angeles rarely sought medical care for themselves, much less their pets. In my youth, my family ran a 24-hour sauna which was a safe space for our neighbors to discuss the neglect and mistreatment we faced as immigrants. Over time, it became a place of belonging where shared hardships fostered camaraderie. Nurtured in this environment, I learned that community builders can cultivate the resilience needed to overcome systemic adversities. As a result, I developed a poignant desire to aid both the people and animals around me who suffered wordlessly. Today, I am a first-year veterinary student at Cornell who continues to delve into spaces where ending animal suffering requires human action. By assisting laboratory animal veterinarians, I advocated for robust veterinary ethics in humane animal testing for medical advancement. At my small animal clinic, I bridged owners, their pet’s well-being, and public health together through preventative medicine. Knowing that Mighty Mouse did not have someone to guide her path towards treatment like our other patients, I could not stand idly by. While fostering, I noticed that she had retained many of her juvenile traits past the average developmental stages. After reviewing case studies for potential differentials, I convinced the rescue to authorize bloodwork to test for congenital hypothyroidism. Streamlining this affirmative outcome was exhilarating for me and cemented my belief that I am made for this field. As a veterinarian, I aspire to create safe spaces and bridge gaps like my family’s sauna did for my community. By collaborating with owners in their pet’s care, I hope to invite families into the process of the medicine I practice, regardless of their socioeconomic backgrounds. Furthermore, I hope to become a voice for the ones in the veterinary community that we often forget to advocate for: the animals without support systems, pet owners that lack access to veterinary care, the veterinarians and their staff bruised by compassion fatigue, and even my peers, who will be at the frontline of care for the influx of pandemic pets. Three years in the future, I will have graduated veterinary school and hopefully will be starting a rotating internship. Working at the small animal emergency department here at Cornell has inspired me to pursue emergency medicine and critical care as a specialty. Closer to retirement, I hope to donate my services to local animal shelters in struggling communities by assisting in spay/neuter programs. I also plan to mentor fellow upcoming BIPOC veterinarians once I have established myself in my career to proactively support inclusivity and diversity recognition in this field.