MADISON, Wis. (WBAY) – An exciting rite of passage took place for UW-Madison medical students on Friday.

The ceremony of awarding the white coat symbolizes their entry into the profession, but the path to this moment was anything but easy for one student.

Among the new students receiving white coats at the UW School of Medicine and Public Health, Kaniala Aragon’s career stands out.

The Hawaiian native had a rough start, battling dangerous seizures and limited access to healthcare in a remote valley.

“We were a sinking ship. So we decided to move to Wisconsin for the sake of my future and the future of my family. We were homeless at first before we moved in with my grandparents,” Kaniala said.

When Kaniala’s mother was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in high school, he realized his calling in medicine.

“Seeing the doctors and health teams working together really inspired me. I wanted to be part of this system that saved my mother’s life,” Kaniala said.

He enrolled at Marian University to become an x-ray technician, but a spinal cord injury changed his career path.

“It was then that I had a deeper appreciation for the things I was learning and realized that the path I was on was not enough to fulfill what I wanted to learn in medicine. So I decided to change my path to the pre-medical route,” Kaniala said.

On Friday, Kaniala and his classmates stood ready to put on the white coat, a symbol of years of hard work and perseverance.

“Putting on this coat brought back all the true emotions of the struggles my family and I have been through,” Kaniala said.

For him, putting on the coat is more than just a ceremony marking the start of his career. It is the fulfillment of a lifelong dream.

Although the road to get here hasn’t been easy, Kaniala says he’s ready to make a difference in the lives of others.

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