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DR. JoANN ARCHEY considers herself blessed. "And when we are blessed, we are supposed to give back," she says.
That, the family medicine physician at Christie Clinic Rantoul has done -- over and over -- be it at the food pantry at St. Luke C.M.E. Church, as a health minister at Canaan Missionary Baptist or by advising students on the University of Illinois campus, where she earned three degrees and now serves as an associate professor of clinical medicine.
This weekend, Archey will be saluted for her efforts, when she's presented with the Living Legend Award by Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority's Epsilon Epsilon Omega Chapter, part of the 25th annual Pink Panache scholarship gala.
Ahead of Friday night's ceremony at the I Hotel, Archey answered questions from staff writer Rob Le Cates.
What does your community service look like and mean to you?
I work as a family medicine physician. I see patients from birth until death, and I became a family medicine physician because I believe that allows me to build relationships with people. I think that it is in building those relationships that I'm able to provide the best care for the people that I see.
Initially, I thought I wanted to be a psychiatrist, which is great work, but I don't think that would have allowed me to build the relationships that I have built over the years.
I also work as an associate professor of clinical medicine at Carle Illinois College of Medicine, and in that role, I facilitate what is called our problem-based learning and work with first-year medical students who are learning how to diagnose and treat various conditions."
(Community service) means giving back, using the resources and knowledge that I have. It means going to the food pantry at St. Luke C.M.E. Church every third Saturday of the month; help setting up the food pantry for the people that will come there; and handing out the food to people in need.
It also means (helping children learn how to read). It means using any way in which I've been blessed to be a blessing for someone else.
What's been your single proudest professional moment?
I think that my proudest moments are to see the achievements of others, mainly my children. When I see them achieve something, it is a reminder to me that I've been a good influence in their life.
Really, to see anybody that I've encouraged to do something, to achieve a goal that they've set for themselves.
How did you get started in community service?
So when I completed my residency in family medicine, I interviewed for jobs, and I have to say that's what God had for me, because (Rantoul is) where I was offered a job. I will say that as a medical student, I had my public health scholarship, and part of the requirement of that scholarship was to work in an underserved area. When I graduated and completed my residency, Rantoul was considered underserved.
I was looking to stay in this community because my children were in school at the time. I looked for positions that allowed me to stay in the community, and so Christie Clinic Rantoul allowed me to fulfill my requirement to the state of Illinois and stay in this community.
Finish this sentence: In 10 years ...
I see myself still being an advocate for other people. I still see myself being involved and doing all that I can to help someone along the way.
I could be retired today, but in 10 years I'll be well past retirement age. I love to travel, but we travel already, so I don't know what I'll do when I ever retire.
What were the top three items on your life bucket list?
My first goal in life was to be a teacher, and I guess in a way I've achieved that.
My second goal in life was to be a doctor, so I've achieved that.
My third goal was to be a wife and mother, and so I've achieved that.
So I think that those were things I wanted to achieve in life. The most important thing is to be who God created me to be. That's the most important thing on my bucket list, and I'm still working to achieve that.
Who's your role model?
Jesus is my role model. I'm not enamored by people, and I'm really grateful for that. I'm thankful for that because what I've seen in life is that most everybody will let us down at some point or another.
How about someone you admire?
My mother. The reason being is because even though she only had an eighth-grade education, she made education really important to us. She encouraged me, my sister and three brothers to get as much education as we possibly could.
She believed that education would be a way for us to overcome the disadvantages we faced in life. My mother was widowed with five children, and we lived in the South.
She made sure we went to school, that we came home and did school work. She instilled a drive to succeed in me and made education one of the things that I strived for and did well in, and eventually it led to all of the blessings that I have in my life.