Dr. Aaron Johnson and his wife, Jenna, pose with their seven children, ages three to 15, in their home in Ohio. The Johnsons will be moving to Blue Earth next August.

The good news is, United Hospital District will have a new doctor on staff.

The bad news is, it will be a year from now.

Dr. Aaron Johnson is scheduled to begin practice at UHD in August of 2009.

“Even though it is a year away, we are excited to have a physician like Dr. Johnson coming to the hospital and clinics,” Administrator Jeff Lang says.

Dr. Johnson is currently finishing his third year of residency in Des Moines, Iowa. He came into medicine a little later than some, he says.

“I did my undergraduate work in animal science and agronomy,” Dr. Johnson says.

He worked in commercial agriculture, and was the manager of several grain elevators.

“I also went to veterinary school, because that was what I wanted to do at one time,” he adds.

Eventually he decided that he wanted to become a medical doctor and be a general family practitioner in a small town.

“I went to med school in the Caribbean, at St. George’s University in Granada,” he explains.

From there it was to Michigan for two years working in a hospital, before moving on to Iowa.

“If you want the full story, I was born in northern California, and grew up in northern Missouri,” he says with a chuckle. “I guess I’ve been around a little.”

Johnson’s wife, Jenna, is from Pine City, so a move to Blue Earth puts them closer to a lot of family.

“Jenna’s extended family still lives all over Minnesota,” Dr. Johnson says. “And mine are around Missouri.

The Johnson’s have seven children: Joshua, 15; Cynthia, 13; Jacob 11; Maja, 9; Robyn, almost 7; Vern, almost 5; James, 3.

“Jenna is a full-time mom,” Johnson says, “Although she also has lots of other interests and hobbies.“

One interest the whole family shares is farming, and that is one reason they want to live in a rural community.

“We know we will need to eventually be on a farm, even just a hobby farm,” Johnson says. “The whole family is really into farming – I don’t know if that is a hobby or what.“

Some of Dr. Johnson’s other hobbies are a bit unusual for Minnesota.

“I really enjoy SCUBA diving and snorkeling,” he says. “And my winter sport is skiing, although I want to try snowmobiling.“

He also likes to hunt.

Dr. Johnson says he and his family are excited about the move to Blue Earth.

“We were really impressed, it is such a clean and friendly town,” he says. “We really like the schools, and that is important to us.“

“It seems like a good fit,” he adds.

Although the move is a year away, Dr. Johnson says it is amazing how fast a year can go by.

“In fact, these last eight years, since I decided to become a doctor, have been a blur,” he says.

“We are excited and can’t wait,” he says.