Skip navigation

February 2024: Celebrating Black nurses in Washington

|

Join Health Care for All-WA as we mark Black History Month. We are honored to share the voices of retired Black nurses in our community, Frankie Manning and Vanetta Molson-Turner, at our February 2nd Wednesday Speaker Series. They shared what inspired them to dedicate their lives to the health of our community, their experiences as nurses, and participated in a Q&A. Bios below!

Frankie Manning served as a registered nurse in the U.S. Army and the U.S. Veterans Health Administration. She went on to serve our community as a member of the King County Board of Health, the Washington State Board of Health, the Health Equity Research Community Advisory Council, and the Washington Center for Nursing. She worked to ensure diversity, equity, and inclusion in each of these roles. In 2018, she was selected as one of the 100 Most Influential Nurses by the University of Washington.

Vanetta Molson-Turner was inspired by activism in the positive work of the Seattle Black Panther Party, where she participated in free breakfast programs and community development. She enrolled in nursing school to change our community by giving power to people to make those changes. She worked as a registered nurse for more than three decades, and she has followed that service with leadership roles in the NAACP and in Puget Sound Advocates for Retirement Action.