As an Elks scholar, Alvira Tyagi understands the importance of community.

“When I received the Elks Most Valuable Student scholarship as a high school senior from upstate New York, it meant more to me than just a generous financial award,” says Tyagi, a 2021 MVS scholar sponsored by Watervliet-Colonie, N.Y., Lodge No. 1500. “It was the first time I truly felt seen and uplifted by a community beyond my own family.”

Now exploring her interest in geriatric care, Tyagi works to ensure that all her patients feel a sense of community.

“Building physician-patient connections rooted in trust is essential even in the most challenging circumstances,” says Tyagi. “I hope to forge this same bond with elderly patients by providing humanizing healthcare.”

For Tyagi, a 2025 Harvard College graduate, providing humanizing healthcare means uplifting the voices of patients. During a field internship to India, she did exactly that.

Tyagi spoke with mothers and grandmothers from rural villages to learn how postpartum depression has affected them. Because mental health is taboo in these villages, the conversations were often held in hushed tones, far away from others.

“It was in these quiet moments that I began to understand how layered health inequity could be: not just a matter of resources, but of language, culture, and generational silence,” says Tyagi.

From these conversations, she was inspired to make a change. Tyagi created a safe space for patients to talk with other women about their ailments, free from guilt and shame. To normalize the topic, she used visuals and metaphors the women could relate to instead of medical jargon and clinical terms.

“Slowly, the energy in the room began to shift,” says Tyagi. “The women began speaking up and asking questions about nutrition, postpartum care, and mental health.”

The time in India proved to be foundational for Tyagi’s future.

“Through this experience, I found a clearer sense of who I was and the kind of physician I wanted to become,” says Tyagi. “I realized that medicine is not just about diagnoses or treatment plans. It’s about human connection. It’s about entering someone else’s world, understanding their fears and values, and helping them feel seen and heard.”

With the Weigel scholarship, Tyagi will pursue her medical training as an M.D. candidate at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York City. No matter which new communities she may build, she will always have the #ElksFamily by her side.