Laura Kathleen KOSAKOSKI

LAURA KATHLEEN KOSAKOSKI In Loving Memory of Laura Kathleen Kosakoski, 34, a family physician from Canmore, Alberta, passed away on January 11, 2020, following injuries sustained in an avalanche accident on Mount Hector in Banff National Park. Laura is survived by her mother, Becky; her brother, Graham; and her husband, Adam Campbell. Laura was born on November 25, 1985, in Vancouver, B.C. to Becky and Gord Kosakoski. She was raised in Kamloops, B.C. where she excelled at academics, arts, and athletics. Laura had a particular fondness for hockey, a sport she played at the elite representative level, often on boys' teams due to her skill. Academically, Laura was consistently recognized as the top student in her grade level, an achievement she maintained until her graduation from Kamloops Secondary School in 2003. Kamloops is where the seeds of Laura's love for the outdoors were planted, with family camping trips throughout the Rockies as well as regular fly-fishing with her father, Gord, on the shores of the Thompson River. After graduating high school, Laura moved to Vancouver, where she enrolled in the neuroscience program in the Faculty of Science at the University of British Columbia. At UBC, Laura became a beloved member of the varsity Thunderbirds Women's Hockey team, for whom she played right-wing. Although not (by her own admission) the most skilled member of a team that (by their own admission) had a less-than-enviable win-record, Laura gritted her way from being an unknown walk-on to being selected as Assistant Captain of the team, a recognition of her leadership, guts, and heart. At UBC's annual varsity athletic awards dinner, Laura was repeatedly recognized by her teammates as the program's "most inspirational player". Following her undergraduate years, Laura volunteered in South and Central America. She returned to Vancouver in 2010 to begin studies in the MD program at UBC. During medical school, Laura quickly fell in love with rural medicine and travelled across B.C. to provide essential care to rural communities. Laura additionally travelled to South Africa, where she volunteered her care in the impoverished townships of Soweto. After medical school, Dr. Laura was accepted into the prestigious residency program at the Department of Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine, University of Calgary. While in Calgary, Laura met her future husband, Adam Campbell. Moving closer to the Rockies reawakened Laura's deep love of the mountains. She quickly became a skilled ultramarathon runner, mountaineer, and backcountry skier. During her residency, Laura continued to volunteer in rural communities in Canada and abroad, including an extended stay in a remote village in Guatemala. Two years into her anesthesiology residency, and after a difficult period of soul searching, Laura made the decision to switch her practice to family medicine, believing that this was the best way she could make a lasting impact on her patients' lives. Laura finished her residency in 2017 and moved with Adam to Canmore, Alberta, where Laura started her family medicine practice. Laura loved being a 'family doc' in a small town. She treated her patients with compassion and skill and, although her career was brief, it was widely and deeply felt. To have met Kos, as she was affectionately called, was to know her. Her kindness, wisdom, and infectious laugh left a deep and lasting impression on the lives she touched. Laura cared deeply for her family and friends, messaging daily with her mum and brother, and was deemed a "best bud" by all who knew her intimately. Laura and Adam travelled extensively during their time together, racing across mountains in their backyard and across the globe. Although she left us far too young, if you measure a life by its stories rather than its years, Laura led an unmistakably long and passionate life. Before she passed, Laura wrote a note to herself, which contained her guiding principle: "Everyone you meet is fighting a battle you know nothing about. Be kind. Always." Laura's life embodied this principle like few others. Although she will be deeply missed, her example will forever inspire the lives touched by this unique and precious soul. We love you to the moon and back, LK.