Dr. Duane Browning

by April Scheinoha
Reporter

He could’ve been a veterinarian, but his jokes would have been lost on the animals. Before long, his human patients will have to rely on other doctors for their care and a few laughs in an exam room. Dr. Duane Browning will set aside his stethoscope for the final time Friday, Feb. 1.

“It’s going to be really tough,” said Browning, who has been working as a physician for nearly 35 years in Thief River Falls.

A community open house will be held in Browning’s honor Friday, Feb. 1, from 3 to 5 p.m., at Sanford Clinic in community conference rooms 1 and 2.

Browning’s medical career took root at a farm. Growing up in Kasota, he worked for a bachelor farmer. The farmer was a jack-of-all-trades, oftentimes taking care of his animals’ medical needs himself. Browning enjoyed helping his employer and realized that a medical career was for him. However, he liked the idea of helping human patients.

Browning began practicing medicine in Osceola, Wis., where he worked in a small clinic for five years. A medical school friend, Dr. James Burrell, was from Thief River Falls and helped Browning decide to move to Thief River Falls almost 35 years ago. At that time, Browning began working at Falls Clinic. Since that time, the names and locations have changed a few times. His employer is now Sanford Health.

Browning began thinking about retirement within the past three years. Now, he has decided the time is right. Browning said he’s slowing down and identifying parents more often by their kids. After all, he has taken care of whole families over the years.

One of those families is the Philipp family. Browning has taken care of four generations of the Philipp family.

“He always took the time if you had concerns about things,” said Sue Philipp, part of the second generation of Philipps who have received care from Browning.

Philipp started seeing Browning soon after he arrived in Thief River Falls. Browning has also counted Philipp’s mother-in-law Yvonne, husband Joe, kids Brent and Sally, daughter-in-law Crystelle and grandkids Elliot and Norah as his patients.

“I’m going to miss him greatly,” Philipp said.

It’s slowly hitting Browning that retirement is around the corner. He has been saying goodbye one patient at a time. “It’s been really touching,” he said.

That’s not to say that Browning or his wife, Suzanne, won’t miss the fact that he leaves the house every day for work. “I think she has second thoughts about that, too,” he said.

However, Browning’s retirement will give the couple more time to see family. The couple has seven children and eight grandchildren. “It’s been a great place to raise a family,” he said.

The Brownings particularly realized the heart of the community after the death of their 5-year-old son, Logan, in 1993.

The couple plans to stay in Thief River Falls, where they share a property with eight cats, a dog and two horses at last count. Browning said they’re not world travelers. However, his wife would like to travel to Alaska in the winter.

Retirement will also enable Browning to get a haircut without having to schedule an appointment around caring for patients. His barber only works Mondays, said Browning, who wasn’t enthused about having his photo taken to accompany this article.

Browning asked a coworker to supply the Northern Watch with an old photo of him. The photo was probably 20 years old or more. He then wondered aloud what she planned to do with the photo. She declined to tell him. It will probably make an appearance at the open house.