Fort McMurray is now a vibrant community known for its connection to the oil industry.

"McMurray at that time, would have been the size of Stayner," she recalls.

She said her father's company helped build the community, a third of it anyway.

"This is a guy (Kit) who was an academic who went out to Fort McMurray Alberta, which was really like going out to the edge of the earth. Started a construction company that built a third of the city at that time," she said. "They were pioneers in making the oil sands in becoming a reality of Canadians."

Her mother Lynne, was a stay-at-home mom.

"She was very proud of that," she said.

Leitch said her mom had a Grade 10 education but taught her some of the lessons that would shape her life - the most important one being service to her community. Whether it was as a member of the Kinette Club, assisting the marching band or volunteering for the YMCA, she said her mom made sure she and her siblings took pride in where they lived.

"She's the reason why all three of us are so community and public service oriented," she said. "When we first moved to McMurray, there wasn't a kindergarten teacher so she became the kindergarten teacher."

Leitch said while growing up in Fort McMurray, her mother taught her to treat everyone fairly and never to exclude anyone.

Leitch said it was her mom who encouraged the children to pursue academics or a skilled trade.

"She wanted all of us to be successful professionally," she said.

Leitch didn't waste anytime.

A smart kid, she skipped the sixth grade, graduated from high school at age 16 and started university at 17.

She said at age 20, she was working on her MD while at the same time completing her undergrad degree.

"All my close friends called me Doogie," she said referring to the 1980s television show Doogie Howser MD, which sees a teenager become a practicing physician.

In 1989, at age 18, her world was rocked.

After a battle with breast cancer, her mother Lynne died.

"When she became ill, she focused even more on that (community service)," she recalls. "We had 500 or 600 people come to her funeral."

Leitch said while she was in university, she had no idea what she wanted to do.

"I ended up in medical school a little bit by mistake," she said. "I wasn't really that focused."

She said it was her father who made certain she wasn't going to leave university.

"He said 'if you think at the age of 19 you're going to come back to Fort McMurray and work for our construction company or go into the work force, think again. Pick a lane,'" she recalls. "I applied to medical school because I thought it was the lesser of all evils to me. I had no interest in being a physician."

She said like most Canadians, she largely paid her own way in university. She said her father helped her out, but her education was paid for by student loans, bursaries and scholarships and part-time jobs.

One of those jobs was working for MPP David Turnbull. The other was operating her own student moving company for two years during the summer.

"I was trying to figure out if I'd go and get a regular job and be around for my siblings," she said. "My dad had this idea that I should run my own little business so I would learn how to do that. There wasn't a good small moving company or courier service (in Fort McMurray)," she said.

Leitch said during her campaign that running this business gave her some understanding of what small businesses go through.

"I learned about managing staff and dealing with clients," she said.

Leitch said she was really busy for five or six days a month and the rest of the time could take care of her siblings.

During her second and third year in medical school, Leitch said she didn't see the inside of a classroom. She said becoming a physician isn't just about reading textbooks.

"I have a very good memory, it's served me well," she said.

She said she attended all of the clinical courses but had other interests including being involved in the campus association for the Conservative Party.

However, it was in third year her life changed.

"The provincial and federal medical associations agreed that there should be portability across the country," she said.

This forced students to choose if they wanted to be a family doctor or pick a specialty.

"It forced me to choose in third year medicine what I wanted to do with my life," she said.

It was an elective course at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto under Dr. Jim Wright that made her become a pediatric orthopedic surgeon.

"I love my job. I get to take care of kids everyday and get them back playing on the playground. It's very satisfying," she said.

In her role as a physician, Leitch works as a trauma surgeon, helps fix broken bones and also sees kids with debilitating diseases such as cerebral palsy.

She said as a physician, there are people you can rely on, the senior resident and other colleagues.

"The first time I entered into an operating room when I was the staff, I was in charge, it was a daunting experience," she said.

Leitch recalls one incident as a trauma surgeon where a four-year old in London was hit by a tractor-trailer. He had a severely damaged pelvic bone and a broken femur.

"I've had circumstances as a trauma surgeon you sort of take a deep gulp when you have to talk to the parents about what you have to do," she said. "It was the first time I had to have a conversation with some parents where I couldn't tell them their child was going to be alive after the surgical procedure. I will never forget speaking to his parents." The child lived.

Leitch moved to her home in Clearview Township - a rural piece of land just outside Creemore - in 2005.

"I came here because this is like home," she said. "It was like home and the people are like home. They are very grounded and if you ask someone a question and they give you a straightforward answer."

While living in Toronto, she made a comment to her father that there was "no sense of community."

Leitch said she also lived in Los Angeles for a year while training. She said there was a sense of community in the hospitals but outside of that she called it "very lonely and impersonal"

"I lived in condos, I was sick of that. I grew up with a backyard," she said. "I know it's fine if I walk next door and ask for a cup of sugar, they are going to give me a cup of sugar. It's the neighbourly thing to do. Living in downtown Toronto as a resident I would never go next door and ask my neighbour for a cup of sugar. It just wouldn't happen."

Leitch has been involved in politics since she was a teenager.

Her father became a riding president and a campaign manager for a family friend who was seeking office.

They wanted to get some young people involved in the campaign.

"Myself and the children of the other members of the executive were the first targets," she said.

She said her family were Conservatives but nobody had ever run for political office and it wasn't something she was pressured to do.

Leitch was involved in Jim Flaherty's leadership campaign and also helped develop the Children's Fitness Tax Credit, but never thought of a career in politics.

Until, Flaherty came calling.

"I was in clinic. My clinic is a like a concrete bunker. My Blackberry doesn't work, my phone doesn't work. I had just come out of clinic and he phoned," she said. "He called and said I think you should run for this nomination. I love my practice, we've had this conversation in the past. I'm flattered, but no."

He persisted.

"You're home is there. You love being there," she said. "On a regular basis for the next few months, he would call about it."

Leitch was aware of the issues happening with then MP Helena Guergis but said she only knew what she was reading in the papers.

Leitch said it was a tough decision.

"It took a lot of conversations with my dad. A lot of conversations with mentors," she said. "I know it was depicted that it was a forgone conclusion and that the decision was made before it was ever made. I slept fine but it was always in the back of my mind for the three or four months."

She said Flaherty finally convinced her.

"Having the Minister of Finance for the country encouraging you to run is a strong endorsement. He said if you truly want to do public service for this country, you should step up now," she said. "I will never see a million children in my clinic. It was an opportunity to have a broader impact on Canadians, which I'm not afforded by standing in my operating room."

She was elected by a wide margin in May and said she is getting used to her role. She operates on five hours sleep and is usually up by 6 a.m.

Leitch said her mom was the same way, in bed by midnight, up at five.

She is finding the parliamentary secretary roles keep her busy but said she would still like to have a family.

"I love kids, I would like to have some of my own," she said. "I've been very focused of making sure other people's children are healthy in the past."