KeKe Fuller was never your average little girl. Instead of a play kitchen, her playroom was set up like a doctor’s office where she wore scrubs and a surgical mask.

On a visit to the bookstore, she picked out an illustrated volume of human anatomy and physiology and had her dad, a family practice physician, read it to her at night. Her fascination with medicine began even earlier.

“When she was two and a half, KeKe saw me stretched out on the couch and asked me how tall I was,” said Sean Fuller, a 1995 School of Medicine graduate. “I told her, then she thought it over for a second and announced that she was going to be a six-foot woman doctor.”

By the time she was six, KeKe had settled on becoming a cardiothoracic surgeon — she learned to pronounce the word — and informed her science teacher she wouldn’t practice medicine with her father because he was “just a family practice doctor.” Every time the family drove past the School of Medicine, she declared that’s where she would go.

But all of that precociousness and childhood energy disappeared on Memorial Day weekend in 2013, when the Fullers’ little girl developed a fever. Severe respiratory distress soon followed and within a week KeKe was at the Medical University of South Carolina receiving extracorporeal membrane oxygenation through a lung bypass machine.

“The hope was that her lungs would have a rest. But things never improved,” said her mother, Jillian Fuller.

Forty-seven days later, KeKe passed away, the precise cause of her respiratory failure a mystery even after extensive testing by the Centers for Disease Control.

“The hardest day of my life was when she died,” Sean Fuller said. “The second hardest was the next day when I had to tell her twin, Jack, that his sister was gone.”

In the free fall of grief that followed, the Fullers considered one idea and another to memorialize their daughter. How can anything capture the essence of a cheerful little girl who wanted to become a doctor and save lives?   

“We no longer have our daughter’s future so memories of her become — ‘precious’ is not the word. You long for people not to forget,” Jillian Fuller said. “We want you to talk about our child.”

To that end, the Fullers and many of their friends and family created the Kensley “KeKe” Fuller Memorial Endowed Scholarship.  The scholarship was established in honor of Dr. Sean Fuller, M.D. (’95 graduate, USC SOM) and wife Jillian’s six-year-old daughter Kensley or “Keke” -- as she was known, and is a merit-based four-year scholarship for a USC School of Medicine student who has demonstrated interest in community service. In the Fall of 2015, the first recipient of the Kensley Fuller Scholarship was selected.  The recipient’s name, John Stathopoulos.  John graduated in May of 2018 and is currently doing his residency at UNC Hospitals in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.  Soon, a new scholar will be selected and receiving funding for all four years of medical school.  “We will never send KeKe to the School of Medicine, but with this scholarship, we can help someone else attend,” Jillian Fuller said.  

Establishing the scholarship has helped the Fullers cope with the devastating loss of their little girl, and through initiating the Holiday Healing Tree Campaign, they hope to help others cope with their grief during the difficult holiday season by providing them with a unique and special way to honor the memory of their loved ones, while lighting the way for aspiring physicians.

The Project

The University of South Carolina School of Medicine, in partnership with the Fuller Family, has launched the Holiday Healing Tree Campaign to raise money to support scholarships for medical students at the School of Medicine, while also helping those who have lost a loved one cope with their grief. Last year was the inaugural year for the fundraising effort and nearly $14,000 was raised to benefit the Kensley Fuller Memorial Endowed Scholarship.  The Fuller’s ultimate goal is to raise enough to provide a full scholarship to a student for four years.

The Holiday Healing Tree is an 18 ft. Christmas tree on the grounds of the University of South Carolina’s School of Medicine.  Located in the Courtyard near the school’s memorial garden, the tree was donated by The Fuller Family Foundation, partnering with SC Internal Medicine, for the purpose of raising money to support the Kensley Fuller Endowed Scholarship Fund, which provides a four-year scholarship of at least $20,000 ($5,000 per year) to students.  

Through a tax deductible gift of just $20, individuals can purchase a light to honor the memory of a loved one.  The tree will be lit up in sections, from bottom to top, as lights are purchased.  In all, there are 4,550 lights on the tree.  This year’s goal is to raise $14,000 to benefit the Kensley Fuller Scholarship by December 11th.

On the evening of Dec. 13th, a special candlelight vigil will be held, from 6:30 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. at the site of the tree, during which the names of each and every loved one who has a light turned on in their memory will be read aloud.  The Fullers hope that this effort will help others experience a little bit of healing themselves, while doing good by providing critically-needed support to medical students.

The Impact

Most medical students graduate with more than $200,000 of debt. Currently in-state tuition, and related expenses, for the USC School of Medicine is more than 48,000 per year, and out-of-state tuition is double that.  We want to ensure that any individual wishing to pursue a career in medicine has the opportunity to do so, and we want our medical students to have the freedom to choose what specialty they pursue, without the heavy burden of such debt on their shoulders. 

Make your gift by December 10th, and help the Fuller Family achieve their ultimate goal of eventually providing a full scholarship to a talented student. By purchasing a light in memory of your loved one for just $20, hopefully your heart will feel a little lighter this holiday season. 

Thank You for Your Support

You donation will make a huge impact on a medical student’s life and future. It will also help the Fullers reach their ultimate goal of funding a full scholarship in their daughter’s memory.  While the scholarship won’t bring KeKe back, it will keep her legacy alive in a way that she would have wanted. Thank you so very much for your support.