Dawn Venning is a physician's assistant who works at Sequoia Medical Health center. She treats her patients as if they were her family.

Dawn Venning: A loving woman
Ebony Bailey | 2/6/08 | Black History Month Feature

Helping people and caring for people: this is what one does when one is a physician’s assistant. This is the profession of Dawn Venning, a local P.A. who works at Sequoia Medical Health Center, and this week's featured prominent black for the Grizzly Gazette in honor of Black History Month.   

Venning was born and raised in Memphis, Tennessee; she grew up with two sisters and a single mom.

Her family moved from Mississippi to Memphis so that they could give a better life to the children.

"My mom picked cotton so that I wouldn't have to," she said. "I never even thought that I wasn't going to go to college."

She got her bachelor's at Oakward College in Hantsville Alabama, a Christian College that is a member of the United Negro College fun. She got her masters' at Loma Linda University, a Christian medical school located in Loma Linda, Calif.

She always wanted to work in the field of medicine, but she originally did not want to become a PA, instead she wanted get her MD and work as a doctor. But she likes being a PA, because she says she gets to experience a lot of different sub-fields, while still working in the field of medicine.

Working in the profession for nine years, she really enjoys her job as a P.A., and working with her patients.

"I have a real big connection with my patients," she said. "When I care for the patients I care for the family."

She makes sure that even if the patients don't have families, like some of her elderly patients, she will treat them like family. She even checks up on them during Christmas time. She hopes that she provides good care for her patients.

"She does an excellent job," Ella Jackson. Jackson is the one who recommended Venning to be featured on the Grizzly Gazette.

But despite her connection with her patients, she still has yet to make a connection with the community of Porterville. With her family living out of state and her new husband living in Northern California, she is always going out of town whenever she gets the chance.

"I've worked here and I've never really, really got a part of the Porterville community," she said.

Her hobbies include working out and reading. “I am a big time nonfiction reader,” she said. She likes reading about political issues and self-help books.

So, does Venning think that Black History Month is celebrated enough in Porterville?

"It's not really acknowledged here in Porterville," she said. "We don't really do a lot [to celebrate it]"

She said that one of the reasons why it may not be acknowledged here is because of the lack of blacks.

"There is not really much of an African American community in Porterville," she said. "In Memphis there is very much an African American community."

She said in Memphis, since there are more blacks; they acknowledged Black History Month a lot more than they do in Porterville. They had civil rights museums, barbeques, and many other ways to acknowledge Black History Month.

But overall, Venning likes the community of Porterville; she said it is very family oriented.

Ayudar a las personas y cuidar a las personas: esto es lo que uno hace cuando es un asistente físico.  Esta es la profesión de Dawn Venning, una asistente física de la localidad y la representante Afro americana de la semana para el Grizzly Gazette en el Mes de Historia Negra.

Venning nació y creció en Memphis Tennessee; creció con dos hermanas y una madre soltera.

“Mi mama recogía algodón para que yo no tuviera que hacerlo,” dijo ella.  “Nunca siquiera pensé que no iba a ir al colegio.”

Obtuvo su Bachelor's en Oakward College en Hantsville Alabama, un colegio Cristiano que es miembro del fondo United Negro College.  Obtuvo su Master's en Loma Linda University, una escuela medica Cristiana localizada en Loma Linda, California.

Siempre quiso trabajar en el campo de medicinas, pero originalmente no quería ser una asistente física, en vez quería obtener su doctrina médica y trabajar como una doctora.  Pero le gusta ser una asistente física, porque dice ella que tiene la oportunidad de experimentar muchas áreas diferentes mientras quedándose en el campo de medicinas.

Trabajando en la profesión por nueve años, de verdad disfruta de su trabajo como una asistente física, y trabajando con sus pacientes.

"Tengo una gran conexión con mis pacientes," dijo ella.  "Cuando cuido a los pacientes cuido a mi familia."

Se asegura que aunque los pacientes no tengan familia, como unos de sus pacientes ancianos, ella los trata como familia.  Hasta los visita durante el tiempo de navidad.  Espera proveer buen cuidado por sus pacientes.

"Hace un trabajo excelente," dijo Ella Jackson.  Jackson es la quien recomendó a Venning a ser la representante del Grizzly Gazette.

A pesar su conexión con sus pacientes, todavía no a hecho la conexión con la comunidad de Porterville.  Con su familia viviendo fuera del estado y su esposo viviendo en el norte de California, sale del pueblo en cada oportunidad que se le da.

"He trabajado aquí y nunca realmente obtuve parte de la comunidad de Porterville," dijo ella.

Sus pasatiempos incluyen el ejercicio, y leer.  “Su una gran lectora de literatura no novelesca,” dijo ella.

Así que, ¿cree Venning que el Mes de Historia Negra es celebrado lo suficiente en Porterville?

“No es realmente reconocido aquí en Porterville,” dijo ella.  “No hacemos mucho.”

Dijo que una de las rezones por las cuales no se reconoce es por la  escasez de Afro americanos. 

“No hay muchos en la comunidad Afro americana en Porterville,” dijo ella.  “En Memphis hay una gran comunidad Afro americana.”

Dijo que en Memphis, porque hay más Afro americanos; reconocen el Mes de Historia Negra mucho más que lo hacen en Porterville.

Pero, en conjunto, le gusta la comunidad de Porterville.  Dice que es una comunidad que se enfoca mucho en la familia.