Jennifer Deputy Beverage knew fairly early in life that she wanted to be a doctor.

“I think I was one of the lucky ones because I kind of knew going into high school what I wanted to do, so I focused on all of those classes,” she said. “I think by the time I graduated from the high school, I had every single science class that we could take.”

With her diploma from Pocahontas County High School, Beverage went on to undergraduate school at Alderson Broaddus College in Philippi and George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia. From there, she went to the West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine in Lewisburg.

During those years, Beverage never wavered on her goal.

“Through it all I was pretty sure I still wanted to go to medical school,” she said. “I’m still very happy with my choice.”

Beverage had a slightly different college experience than most students. She married her high school sweetheart, Mark Beverage, just months after graduating high school. She gave birth to their sons, Shawn, during medical school and Morgan, during her residency. Shawn is now eight-years-old and Morgan is four.

“Definitely after I had my kids, I knew that I had a very set limited amount of time to read my journals or study, so it definitely changed things,” she said. “I think it was fun because I could work all day in the hospital or at med school, and then come home and play with the kids and have something totally different. They really make you remember why you’re doing this, why I’m spending all these long hours studying and at the hospital.”

After graduating from the Osteopathic School, Beverage did her residency at the United Hospital Center in Bridgeport.
Three years later, she found herself back home.

“I always felt I wanted to come back and help,” she said. “After living in the northern Virginia area and having the traffic, and even in Clarksburg, it is really good to come back.”

Beverage became a full-time DO at Community Care of West Virginia in Green Bank and Marlinton on July 6. She is at the Marlinton office Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and in Green Bank Tuesday and Thursday.

“I like being able to serve everyone,” she said. I think having the providers in different offices allows everyone to have their option of who they want to see. All of us practice the same medicine but we all do it a little bit differently.”

As a DO, Beverage is able to offer manipulative therapy, as well as medical services.

“I provide services that include pre-natal coverage and exams, to seeing kids from the time they are discharged from the hospital until they are 18,” she said. “We provide immunizations, sick visits, skin biopsy or take moles off if anyone wants that. We do manipulation. We have the heat packs and we’re going to get the percussion hammer.”

Beverage said she wants to be a family doctor, similar to Dr. Roland Sharp.

“My goal when I came back, was to be able to treat the whole family and cover everything,” she said. “On a little bit different scale, but kind of like Roland Sharp did when he was here.”

Also similar to Dr. Sharp, Beverage said Community Care does house visits.

“I like to do that,” she said. “It’s a different environment and you can really see how patients are in their own environment.”

The Beverage family now resides in the Green Bank area.