Lieutenant Commander Talitha McCallum   

Character Information
Name		Talitha McCallum
Rank		Lieutenant Commander
Position		Paediatrician and Research Scientist
Second Position		Swing Shift Commanding Officer
Gender		Female
Species		Human
Age		29
Physical Appearance
Height		5’ 2”
Weight		110 lbs.
Eye Color		Blue
Hair Color		Auburn
Physical Description		Although considered short, Talitha is proportioned well, not appearing small unless standing directly next to someone. She is slightly built, but wiry. She has inherited the classic Irish complexion, pale skin peppered with freckles that really only become prominent when she’s planet side. Her auburn hair is striking in its contrast to her pale skin. Her blue eyes vary in color from light grey to a brilliant topaz depending on her mood. She also has a tattoo on her upper right arm of the paw print of Mustela putorius furo.

Personality & Traits
General Overview
Talitha is out going, rarely reclusive once she is comfortable with her surroundings. Until then she can be a veritable Jeckyll and Hyde. Either bombastically overcompensating for her shyness, or walling herself behind a façade of formalness, she battles the insecurities faced by every Starfleet officer.
Strengths & Weaknesses
As short as she is, often times she can be physically overcome. She overcomes this with tactical ability, and a wicked right hook. Oftentimes, she lets her temper get the best of her. She has good organizational skills, and is adept at helping junior officers in fulfilling their full potential.
Ambitions
Her original ambition was to drink the entire alphabet on leave. To date she’s only made it to the letter W. Over the years her ambition has changed, now she just strives to better herself and those surrounding her.
Hobbies & Interests
Having grown up in an agricultural community, Talitha’s interests lie in the general direction of the outdoors. Wilderness camping, kayaking, horseback riding, hiking, gardening and cooking are just some of her favorite things. She is also fond of sports, especially the ancient game of Football (American). She enjoys both watching and playing the game. In her youth she enjoyed caring for, breeding and raising various animals.
Languages		English, Gaelic, a smattering of Bajoran, Klingon and Romulan
Family
Father		Kenaniah McCallum, Starfleet
Mother		Moriah Elertson - McCallum, Starfleet
Brother(s)		Tobiah McCallum; Adonai McCallum, Starfleet
Sister(s)		Esther McCallum, Starfleet; Hannah McCallum, Starfleet
Spouse		N/A
Children		N/A
Other Family		Talitha is part of a very large extended family. Her father has 4 brothers and 3 sisters, while her mother has 3 brothers and 3 sisters. That leaves Talitha with 13 aunts and uncles most of whom have large families of their own. At family reunions, it is often joked that the McCallum’s and Elertson's in Starfleet could fill their own Sovereign class ship.

Ken McCallum met Moriah Elertson on his first tour of duty aboard the USS Gallant. The two quietly fell in love and during shore leave shocked the crew by getting married. The shock was compounded 6 months later when Moriah took leave to give birth to their first son Tobiah. Moriah returned to active service when Tobiah was 6 months old, Tobiah staying with Moriah’s parents Seamus and Aoife Elertson. Moriah was then assigned to the USS Trafalgar. Ken and Moriah met as often as possible, and 2 years later Tobiah welcomed his new little sister Esther. Moriah stayed on Earth with her parents and children as long as she could, and when her leave was over, she returned to the Trafalgar. Three years passed, and Moriah again took leave. This is where Talitha joins the story. Two years later Adonai and Hannah joined the family. The children primarily stayed with the Elertson’s on the family farm in New Glarus, Wisconsin. They also would spend time with Ken’s parents in Lisdoonvarna, Ireland. Talitha enjoyed life on the farm. Her grandfather, a retired Starfleet scientist nurtured her enthusiasm for the sciences. By the age of 8 she had her own flock of Booroola Merino sheep which she had been cross breeding with Kelly Hill’s creating a high lamb / wool producing variant. When blight affected the corn, her Grandfather encouraged her help in finding the cause, a resistant strain of mold.
Life was not dull on the Elertson farm. The Elertson’s opened up their home not only to Moriah’s children, but also the children of their other children who served in Starfleet. Thus Talitha learned very early that you had to stand out in a crowd to get attention. It was not uncommon for Talitha to be in the middle of a complicated scheme, or practical joke. She also learned the valuable lesson of being self reliant, but also working in large groups.
When her parent’s situations allowed it she would join them on whatever ship they were stationed. She particularly enjoyed the times that she could stay with her mother. However, when Talitha was 13 her parents embarked on a 3-year deep space mission together. She and her siblings did not return to Earth, rather they joined her Aunt Moya’s (Ken’s sister) family, resettling on Bajor. Moya’s husband Keirian, and two children, Rohirrim and Benjamin, welcomed the McCallum family onto their farm in the Kendra Province. Later that year Tobias returned to Earth to study Literature at Cambridge. Two years later Esther left for Starfleet Academy.
By the time her parent’s returned Talitha was wrestling with the decision to join Starfleet or not. She had always done well in her classes, and she knew her heart lay with the Sciences. Her major decision was should she join Starfleet, or join the private sector as her brother and Uncle Keirian had. She struggled with the decision for two years. After long hard consideration, she finally decided to join Starfleet.
Her days at the Academy were eventful. She did well in her classes, and enjoyed the company of many cousins at the Academy at the same time. The only downfall of coming from such a large, “Starfleet” family was the reputation that she felt she had to live up to. This lead to several reprimands on her record for such shenanigans as kidnapping the rival track team’s mascot, redressing the statues on campus and changing the street signs during freshman orientation.
She enjoyed a wide circle of friends, and had several passing romances. By her senior year she was eager to spread her wings and get out into the universe.
Her first assignment was the USS Timov where she met Connor Dutch. The two became close, and spoke of marriage on occasion. It was a happy time. However, as happens on Starships, tragedy befell the Timov. Connor was killed on an away mission. Talitha dealt with it as well as she could. Over time, her heart healed, however she has never since allowed herself to form such an attachment. She eventually was transferred off the Timov and joined the Science team on the USS Athena. She has since transferred to Deep Space 5.

 

Starfleet Cadet: 2371 – 2375
USS Timov – 2375 – 2380
USS Athena – 2380 – 2384
Current to date – Deep Space 5