Dawn Jacobson-Venn is the administrative assistant of the Department of Family Ministries for the General Conference of the Seventh-day Adventist Church World Headquarters. She studied Interior Design and Business at Atlantic Union College, receiving her BS degree. Her love of children led her to pursue an Early Childhood degree from Walla Walla University, then take graduate courses at Andrews University and Washington State University, where she completed her Masters in Elementary Education.
Prior to taking this position, she and her family served as missionaries for the Southern Asia-Pacific Division for 10 years. She and her family lived in the Philippines for four years where she was the secretary of the Integrated Evangelism Lifestyle Program for the Southern Asia-Pacific Division. Prior to that, they lived in Bangkok, Thailand for six years where she taught a variety of subjects to students in grades 4-12.
Dawn has supported Family Ministries by hosting small groups, caring for missionary volunteers from around the world, speaking for a Bible Camp Program in Sri Lanka, for a Pastor’s Wives meetings in the Philippines, and for a Women’s Retreat in Chiang Mai, Thailand. She has also worked with Pastor’s wives in the Upper Columbia Conference editing the Shepherdess Newsletter, helping plan and speak for Pastor’s Wives Retreats, and taking several continuing education courses in Family Life to become better equipped to encourage healthy, happy families.
She met her husband, Ernesto Douglas Venn, while teaching as a student missionary on the South Pacific islands of Palau. Their passion for sharing God’s love brought them together and they have been married now for 24 years. They have two teen-age children, Joshua and Hannah. She enjoys family and friends, baking, working in the yard, the quiet and peacefulness of nature, and exploring new travel destinations with her family.
