Dawna Aranda grew up on a farm outside of Dublin. She always loved caring for the animals, and her early experiences helped her decide to pursue a career in nursing. Now an emergency room nurse in St. Petersburg, Florida, Aranda is thankful for the upbringing she received in Dublin.
Aranda’s parents homeschooled her, and she foundsupportivecommunities in Cottonwood Baptist Church and Faith Homeschool Group. “I was able to do sports and extra extracurricular activities through them,” she said.
She graduated with her high school diploma in 2018 and immediately started taking classes at Ranger Junior College in Early to study nursing. She graduated as an RN in December of 2020. “That was definitely a challenge, starting my nursing career in the heart of COVID,” she said.
Her first job was working in the emergency room at Eastland Memorial Hospital. Many of her patients were suffering from COVID, and Aranda had to figure out how to be supportive for them when their families couldn’t visit.
She also learned the hardships of rural healthcare. “We didn’t have the resources that larger hospitals have,” she said. “The community was great, though. My co-workers there were absolutely amazing. They really helped me [figure out] who I am as a nurse today, and I’m so grateful for the opportunity to have worked in rural health care.”
In July of 2022, Aranda moved to St. Petersburg, Florida, which is just a little bit west of Tampa.
“I just wanted a change of scenery,” she said. “I loved growing up in Dublin. I love my small hometown and I love being on the farm and all of that, but I wanted to explore what the world had to offer and the world was my oyster at the time. I chose Florida because who doesn’t want to live out their greatest beach vacation every day?”
She found a job at another emergency room in St. Petersburg, where she currently works the night shift.
“St. Pete is a large city so very different from the small hospital that I’m used to,” she said. “I work in a 50-bed emergency department so it’s a very fast pace. You basically don’t sit down your entire 12 hour shift.”
Emergency room work can be tough; Aranda sees patients with gunshot wounds and other life-threatening injuries. When she’s not working, she finds ways to relax by spending time outdoors.
“I’m typically exploring what the city has to offer,” she said. “Most of the time I am frequenting the beach and going for runs on the many trails that we have here and watching the sunset. It’s amazing and I am so grateful for the opportunity to be in Florida.”
Aranda also recently started school again. “I am currently taking online courses through University of Texas at Arlington to achieve my bachelors of science in nursing, in the hopes of furthering my career and seeing what pathway the Lord has for me in the next couple of years,” she said.
She hopes to graduate with her bachelors in 2025.
Her parents, Martha and Billy Aranda, still live in Dublin. They’ve been Aranda’s greatest inspiration throughout her life. “They’re just such hard workers,” she said. “They instilled a drive for work, being passionate about what you do and being kind to people.”
Aranda’s advice to Dublin students, homeschool or otherwise, is to trust that the Lord has plans for them and has their best interests in mind, and also to trust themselves. She has struggled with self-doubt in the past, but has been able to overcome those feelings.
“I’ve just really learned in my move to Florida that it’s okay to have those feelings and to be afraid of failure,” she said. “But you’re only limiting yourself, because you don’t know the possibilities that could come from trying.”
“Don’t be afraid to try,” she said. “What’s the worst that somebody could tell you? No. Okay, we’re gonna keep moving on then. Just try because you just never know. You would be really surprised at the opportunities that could be afforded to you for just asking.”
Editor’s Note: This column chronicles what Dublin graduates have done since high school. If you have any suggestions for other grads, email publisher@dublincitizen. com.