Cathy Dobson/The Independent

Eight years after the late Don Moore of Oil Springs set up a scholarship fund to assist medical students, an impressive $230,000 has been distributed.

Moore donated $1 million in 2017 to the Sarnia Community Foundation, which invested the money and distributes the proceeds annually to medical students who intend to practice in Sarnia-Lambton.

This year’s five recipients accepted a total of $37,500 on Friday during a brief ceremony at the East Lambton Community Complex in Watford.

Moore made the donation in his wife Norma Moore’s memory. It was one of the largest contributions in the Sarnia Community Foundation’s history, said executive director Mike Barron.

This year’s recipients said they were very appreciative and that the money would help offset the daunting cost of becoming a physician.

Canadian medical schools charge about $25,000 a year for tuition and the program is so demanding that most students can’t work on the side to help pay the bills, said recipient Jocelynn De Koning.  Many doctors graduate at least $200,000 in debt, she said.

“That’s why scholarships like this make a big difference. This is going to help pay my line of credit down,” said De Koning.  “I couldn’t be more grateful.”

She grew up on a pig farm near Thedford, attended Western University, and is a second year resident for family medicine at the Central Lambton Family Health Team and Bluewater Health in Petrolia.

“This award has helped me with the financial stress of not only my residency but starting my family here in Lambton County as well,” said De Koning who now lives on a farm with her husband and newborn baby near Watford.

“Having awards like this to support people who want to stay within the community where they grew up, is very greatly appreciated,” she said. “It’s helping me achieve my goals of starting my practice and my family here.”

Other 2025 recipients include:

• Jack Soeder who grew up in Sarnia and is studying second year orthopedic surgery at McMaster University;

• Siobhan LeSarge who also grew up in Sarnia and is starting her second year family residency through Western University;

• Jordan LeSarge, Siobhan’s husband and third year internal medicine student at Western University; and

• Melissa Chopcian from Sarnia, a recent grad in family medicine who plans to set up her practice in Sarnia this fall.  

Jordan LeSarge accepted his scholarship saying he is starting a fellowship in endocrinology this summer and has a strong commitment to practice medicine in underserviced areas like Sarnia.

 “I come from a family of lower socio-economic status and financially supported myself through 13 years of post-secondary education in pursuit of my dreams of becoming  a physician and helping people,” he said.

“I am deeply thankful for being selected as a recipient. It truly is a generous award.”

Four members of the Moore family attended the cheque presentation ceremony including Janice Fuller who lives near Arkona.

“We know it takes such a huge effort to finish medical school and, in spite of the cost, they follow through,” said Fuller.

“My parents saw that kind of commitment and wanted to support it.”

Warwick Township Mayor Todd Case also congratulated the recipients and said he knew Don and Norma Moore for many years.

“It truly is a gift to all of us to have folks like the Moores who care enough about their community to make this kind of contribution,” said Case.