It is precisely this beautiful duality — the pressures of the work and the opportunity to improve the lives of my fellow Montanans — that makes Montana WWAMI (the joint medical school program run through the University of Washington that supports Wyoming, Washington, Alaska, Montana and Idaho) so dear to me. I feel very lucky; I get to practice medicine in my beloved home state while teaching and mentoring current WWAMI students. Seeing these students’ passion for medicine and their dedication to public health is inspiring and keeps me joyous about my profession. This, coupled with the close relationships I get to develop with my patients, makes my profession both a privilege and a calling.