Panic Girl: Brenna Brucker

Her name is Brenna Brucker. She is twenty-four years old. A former National Merit Semi-Finalist and 2004 Wendy's High School Heisman Winner, she is just getting started. Spotlighted in USA Today, this Brown University Graduate not only was head of the Rifle Club during her college years but also the Bear Cub, the female mascot for the Brown Bears football team. Yes, she is my baby sister which makes her even more cool. But in between pursuing a career in medicine at Brown University Medical School, teaching gun safety, and having a patent pending, this is a young woman making her way on her own terms. Smart, beautiful, fun, and fearless, Brenna Brucker is the true epitome of Panic Girl. 

Brenna Brucker,: future physician, inventor, academic, educator and marksman

1. You are a woman and a marksman. Out of all the things a girl could
do, why did you choose to pick up a rife?
At the start of high school, I was on the swim team. However, my high
school had a rifle range beneath the swimming pool, and all of the
swimmers would speculate about what happened beneath this pool. One
day after swim practice I ventured downstairs to see what lie beneath
our pool. I found a dark rifle range that predictably smelled of ammo
and smoke. I also found a community of people who valued a sport of
concentration and dedication, just like swimming. The rifle coaches
were exceptionally inviting, kind, and promoted enthusiasm in a
lifelong sport. Conveniently, marksmanship also fosters breathing
techniques that are useful for managing stress in daily life. In
college, I became president of the Brown University Gun Club. Now that
I am in medical school, I teach medical students gun safety as well as
ballistic injury treatment.
2. Currently, you are enrolled in Brown University’s Alpert School of
Medicine. What made you decide to want to be a doctor?
Growing up, my cousin liked to remove the heads of Barbie dolls. I
liked to try to put Barbie back together. Medicine allows a perfect
mix of thinking, doing, and helping. It’s startling how every part of
the medical care team can interact to put a person, the whole person,
back together after trauma. I think that each role in the medical team
is intriguing, and I wish I could shift between all roles to
understand the entire care of the patient. Every role in medicine uses
knowledge from books combined with compassion to try to help someone
in need.

Our Mom, Our Dad, and Brenna at the Heisman Trophy Awards

3. You currently have a patent pending. Tell us about your invention,
what it does, and how it will impact people?
My invention is a hip orthotic brace, which helps athletes with muscle
injuries. The key to invention is thinking of problems and
investigating if any solution exits, or what solution can best solve
the problem, or if you can make the current solution even better.
There are lots of problems that surround us every day, waiting for
someone to solve.
4.Since your appearance with me on My Strange Addiction, you have
picked up ventriloquism yourself. Tell us about Dr. Know It All, your
puppet partner.
Dr. Know It All is a two foot tall felt puppet who packs a punch of
attitude. Dr. Know It All teaches nutrition, healthy aging, and yoga
to various assisted living homes. I’ve found that discussing medical
issues in groups is hard because the subject matter is emotionally
heavy for those who share. However, when Doctor Know It All is
involved, the crowd perks up, the mood stays light, and all medical
questions are discussed. Life is better with puppets!

Brenna and her puppet partner Dr. Know It All

5. As well as being a future doctor, you are a future educator. What
is PACE and how will it help students?
Providence Alliance of Clinical Educators is a IRC 501(c)(3) Public
Charity aimed to make high school chemistry, physics, and biology more
engaging by turning dull science concepts into short stories. The
short stories use death and destruction to explain science in a
memorable and fun way. Learn more at www.pacescience.org!
7. When you are not doing rounds or studying, what do you do for fun?
I love to go to the gym. It feels like meditation. I turn off my
phone. It’s a special time where I hide from the world and all that
exists is me and the stairmaster. I emerge feeling sweaty and with new
perspectives on problems.
8. If you could give one piece of advice to young women, what would it be?
Keep a journal that records complements that you receive. It sounds
vain at first, but with each year comes new challenges and rarely is
anything accomplished without difficulty and some form of rejection. I
think that keeping a journal that reminds you that you that you have
many personal strengths is key to navigating life’s lemons with grace
and persistence.

When not inventing things and saving the world, a favorite sisterly activity  of ours is fighting aliens

9. If you could have dinner with anyone, who would it be?
I would love to have dinner with Thomas Edison. It’s alleged he said,
"I have not failed 1,000 times. I have successfully discovered 1,000
ways to NOT make a light bulb." I would love to hear about how he
handled all of the times that he did not make light bulbs, as well as
to hear about how he became interested in changing the world around
him.
10. What does this Panic Girl eat for breakfast?
Chocolate and gummy vitamins!

Brenna and the Heisman Trophy

Brenna and Tim Tebow. 

Brenna and Colt McCoy. 

Brenna teaching gun safety. .

Panic Girl Stats
Height: 5'4"
Weight: A gentlemen never asks, a lady never tells
Sign: Virgo with a Sag moon in there somewhere
Celebrity crush: Benjamin Bratt
Status: Single
Hometown: Pittsburgh, PA