Karlee Torgerson has lived all around the world, but Kingfisher County is where Trail Creek Wellness Center’s newest physician assistant is choosing to put down her roots.

“My dad worked in the oil field and I grew up overseas,” she said. “I was born in Singapore and lived all over the place – Canada, Dubai, Indonesia and Oman.”

Her family has lived in Edmond since 2007, and Torgerson graduated from Oklahoma Christian School in 2012 and then earned an undergraduate degree from Oklahoma State University in 2016.

When she wasn’t initially successful in the highly competitive selection process for PA school, Torgerson worked for a year in an orthopedic surgeon’s offi ce.

“That was really valuable experience where I learned a lot,” she said. “The structure of seeing patients, structuring notes, working with the worker’s comp system, the business side of things – I had the chance to do a lot of different jobs.”

She was accepted into PA school the next year, graduating in October from the two-year advanced degree program.

When it was time to start her job search, Torgerson had her eye on Kingfi sher County.

“I went to PA school on a rural scholarship, which carries an obligation to work in a rural community, so I wanted to find a community I could fit into,” she said. “My fiancé was born and raised in Okarche and spoke highly of Bridget (Keast, PA) and Rachel (Cameron, nurse practitioner), so I emailed them my resumé.”

Tyler Pfaff, Torgerson’s fiancé, is not the only person whose opinion influenced her job search.

“Bridget is so well known in the state PA community and everyone I spoke to here had nothing but good things to say about her and Rachel,” she said.

After meeting Cameron and Keast in person and learning about their clinic, Torgerson said she was excited to be offered a position.

“I knew I could fit in really well here and I feel like I have,” she said.

“Karlee is a capable and compassionate medical practitioner and she’ll be a valuable addition to our primary care team,” Cameron said.

Torgerson started working in the clinic in November, shadowing Keast and Cameron, and will begin seeing patients on her own this month.

“Everything I’ve seen since I’ve been here has just reinforced that this is where I need to be,” she said. “It’s one thing to have the respect of your fellow professionals, which Bridget and Rachel absolutely do, but it’s also great to see the amazing relationships with patients and how much their patients love them.”

Torgerson also will be trained to administer cosmetic Botox treatments, expanding the clinic’s current use of the injections to combat migraine headaches.

And she will be trained to conduct Department of Transportation physicals as well.

Another learning process after her rather nomadic childhood has been immersing herself into a community where families have lived for generations, including her husband’s.

Torgerson is one of only two children. Her 23-year-old brother is an electrical engineer who lives with his wife in Wyoming, she said.

“Tyler’s family is so large that only one side of the family can get together at the same time,” she said. “There were 16 people at Thanksgiving, which for me is unheard of.”

Pfaff, a 2012 Okarche High School graduate, is an insurance agent who recently opened an Okarche offi ce.

The wedding is still on despite a formal proposal that nearly ended in disaster, Torgerson joked.

Pfaff planned a surprise proposal at the end of a romantic trail ride. Torgerson, an experienced horsewoman and competitive hunter/ jumper, was thrown from her horse midway through the ride and sustained a concussion.

“I was stunned for a few minutes but then I was OK,” she said, laughing at the irony. “I’ve ridden a horse regularly since the age of 6 and Tyler hadn’t been on one for at least 10 years and I’m the one who fell and got a concussion on our proposal day.”

Pfaff and Torgerson are planning to marry in May and are looking for a home in northwest Oklahoma City.

Meanwhile, Torgerson is busy learning about her new community, becoming involved in local volunteer activities and thoroughly enjoying the rural lifestyle.

“It’s a great community and everyone has gone out of their way to be welcoming,” she said. “I’m glad to be here.”