St. Luke’s urologist also served in Army National Guard

By Andrea Busche

Dr. Rebekah Beach grew up on a dairy farm in the tiny town of Clontarf, Minnesota — population 175. Beach was ambitious, but wondered how she would pay for college. While her parents were hard-working farmers, she came from a family of modest means.

It was through the Minnesota Army National Guard that Beach was introduced to the world at large, and all of its possibilities. Ultimately, the military helped her receive an education, see the world, visit the White House, and even introduced her to her husband, Gregory.

Today, Beach is a physician — a urologist at St. Luke’s hospital in Duluth, Minnesota. Although she is now retired from the military, she is grateful for the plethora of opportunities it brought her way.

Life on the farm

Beach, along with her brother and sister, pitched in on the family farm.

“My parents would do the morning chores, and the expectation was that we’d do the evening chores,” she said.

Interestingly, it was through life on the farm that she became interested in medicine.

“I got into medicine because my dad is a big, tough dairy farmer — except when it comes to blood,” she noted with a chuckle. “So, my dad taught me to do the vaccines and assist the vet. So, I became interested in medicine at an early age.”

Military

In 2001, while still a junior at Benson High School, Beach enlisted in the Army National Guard, where she would ultimately serve until 2015. Joining the military was actually a bit of a fluke for her.

“I had a foster sister who was interested in joining the Army,” Beach said. “We had a recruiter at the house who was talking to my sister about being an Army medic. September 11th had just happened, and everyone was feeling kind of rocked by that. I hadn’t thought about enlisting until then.”

Beach attended basic training at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, in the summer between her junior and senior years of high school. She explained the dramatic effect basic training had on her.

“I came home a completely different person,” she said. “When I left, I was a shy, overweight, not very confident

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Start person, and through the military, I became incredibly disciplined, fit and confident. It was an incredible experience that pushed me to mature. Prior to that, I had only been on an airplane once, and I had barely even left the state.”

After high school graduation, she went through medic training at Fort Sam Houston, Texas. While Beach wasn’t allowed to be deployed to a combat zone at that time due to being a woman (a fact that disappointed her), she enjoyed serving one weekend a month and two weeks a year with the National Guard. Some of her assignments included a two-week mission to Louisiana after Hurricane Katrina, and a cold weather survival session in Norway.

Later, while enrolled at North Dakota State University, Beach joined the Army ROTC, where she spent two and a half years — eventually becoming a medical officer. A highlight of this time was being selected to be sworn-in at the White House — a rare honor, as each state only selected one representative.

While in the ROTC, Beach met her husband, Gregory, a transportation officer, who was originally from the Twin Cities. The two were married in 2010.

Education and medical career

Beach graduated with a bachelor’s degree in dietetics, and attended medical school at the University of Minnesota Duluth. At first, Beach thought she’d become a primary care physician, but found she enjoyed the field of urology after completing a rotation with the urologist on duty.

“A patient would come in with a stone, and we could immediately help them the same day,” she said. Beach also shared another contributing motivation — her grandmother had survived kidney cancer, and ultimately lived to be a “robust, 89-year-old lady.”

Beach completed her urology residency at the University of Michigan in 2016. The couple moved back to Duluth when she was offered a job at St. Luke’s, and she’s been there ever since. Interestingly, three out of the urology department’s five physicians are women.

As a urologist, Beach treats a variety of issues, including kidney stones, incontinence, cancers affecting the kidney, bladder and prostate, and many other conditions. Beach sees patients of all ages and genders.

“It’s so rewarding how close I get to my patients,” she said. “They come to me to ask about the most intimate aspects of their lives. It’s such a privilege to be able to help them with what are sometimes embarrassing conditions. I work hard to develop a good rapport with my patients and earn their trust.”

Family

Beach and her husband have two children: Henry, born in 2014, and Lydia, who was born in 2016. Both Rebekah and Gregory Beach are retired from the military. Gregory worked as a police officer for a time, but is now a stay-at-home dad and prolific volunteer.

Together, the family enjoys camping, fishing, biking and traveling back to Clontarf to help with the family farm. Beach also enjoys hiking, baking and is a novice curler. The Beach family lives in Hermantown.

Advice

Beach offered some words of wisdom for youth who are considering either military service or a career in medicine.

“When it comes to the military, I would say do it,” she said. “You won’t find an experience on the civilian side that will compare to it. The military has made me a much more confident person, and I’m able to stand up for my personal beliefs.

“And, when it comes to the field of medicine, if that’s what your heart pulls you to do, then do it. You’ll never find another job as rewarding as being entrusted to care for another human being.” D

Andrea Busche is a Duluth freelance writer.