On a wintry day in Canada, on the cusp of the 2010 Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver, British Columbia, Timothy Alford bundled up to carry the Olympic Flame through Strathmore, a hamlet located along the Trans-Canada Highway in southern Alberta.

 

“I thought I was ready emotionally, but it was really overwhelming,” said Alford, a family physician in Kosciusko, selected by Coca-Cola as an Olympic Torchbearer for the Feb. 12-28 games. “It was quite a humbling experience.”

 

Donning bright red mittens and holding the Olympic Flame high, Alford proudly relayed it to members of the five-person team of healthcare leaders from the United States—and the only one from the South—that took them by Wheatland Elementary School en route to a poignant ceremony on Strathmore Town Square.

 

“I was blown away by the enthusiasm of the crowd, especially the children,” said Alford. “Canadians take the Winter Olympics games quite seriously, and all you could see was a sea of red—national flags and red mittens. What got me was seeing the children, all clad in red. It was quite moving.”

 

The 106-day Olympic Torch Relay traversed 27,000 miles and linked together hundreds of communities throughout Canada as torchbearers carried the Olympic Flame to Vancouver, British Columbia, for the opening ceremony of the 2010 Olympic Winter Games.

 

“I was constantly calculating kilometers into miles,” joked Alford, whose run covered a quarter-mile. “After going through Calgary, the Olympic Flame was heading over the Canadian Rockies—a much rougher stretch than what we covered. We were also fortunate with the weather. Canadian winters can bite like a wolf or be as gentle as a lamb. Surprisingly, it was milder in Alberta than it was in Mississippi during the early part of January.”

 

Beth Embry, executive director of the Mississippi Academy of Family Physicians (MAFP), nominated Alford to be an Olympic Torchbearer “in recognition of his constant dedication to promote healthy, active lifestyles while simultaneously working to encourage civic engagement in his community.”

 

“Dr. Alford was one of 17 family physicians nominated nationwide for this spot, and I knew there was no better representative than him,” said Embry. “He’s just remarkable.”

 

A family physician for more than a quarter-century in rural Mississippi, Alford has worked tirelessly to strengthen public education and wellness.

 

“Residing in a state that has the highest obesity rate in the United States, many of Dr. Alford's patients struggle with the chronic medical problems associated with obesity,” said Embry. “Dr. Alford encourages patients to exercise regularly as part of a healthy, active lifestyle. He also takes to heart the importance of practicing what he preaches by running every morning at the local high school track and along the historic Natchez Trace.”

 

Averaging 30 miles per week for the past 32 years, Alford has logged 48,000 miles, equivalent to two trips around the world. 

 

“In carrying the Olympic Flame, I honored the thousands of family doctors in the United States and across the world who carry the torch of wellness and prevention everyday as they care for their patients,” said Alford.

 

As a member of MAFP and president of the MAFP Foundation, Alford helped establish a Rural Health Scholars Program that encourages high school and college students to consider becoming primary care physicians. The program also provides scholarships to students for their medical education. Nationally, Alford has chaired the American Academy of Family Practitioners (AAFP) Commission on Legislation. Board-certified by the American Board of Family Medicine, Alford holds the AAFP Degree of Fellow, an earned degree awarded to family physicians for distinguished service and continuing medical education.

 

While serving on his local school board, and during his tenure as president of the local PTA, Alford worked to mandate physical education and revise nutritional standards within Mississippi's public schools. Alford chaired his county's Habitat for Humanity program, during which time three houses were built, and was founding chairman of the education foundation.

 

Alford, who maintains a wildlife sanctuary and habitat on his farm, and serves on the Pastor-Parish Relations Committee of First United Methodist Church in Kosciusko, has taken advantage of his platform to promote the concept of patient-centered medical homes, an issue he’ll address when he takes over as president of the Mississippi State Medical Association later this year.

 

“We’ve been paddling upstream for a while, and even in all the discussion about healthcare reform, it’s not talked about very much,” he said. “It’s time to put down the stick and pick up that torch.”

 

The Millsaps College graduate, who earned his doctorate at the University of  Mississippi School of Medicine and completed his family medicine residency at the Columbus Medical Center in Columbus, Ga., said he was among rising stars in healthcare during his Olympic venture.

 

“Coca-Cola picked outstanding youth with healthcare achievements, like the 15-year-old girl from Ohio who singlehandedly organized an Internet fundraising campaign, and raised $10.4 million toward Katrina relief efforts,” said Alford.

 

Even though he has downplayed his role in the Jan. 19 Olympic Flame run, Embry said Alford stood out.