Oregon VMA

Event: Annual meeting, March 8-10, Corvallis
Awards: Meritorious Service Award: Dr. Robert Franklin, Portland, for exemplary servant leadership to the organization, veterinary profession, and his community. A 1979 graduate of Washington State University, Dr. Franklin owns Oregon Veterinary Specialty Hospital in Beaverton. He is a diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine and a past president of the OVMA. Dr. Franklin is chair of the OVMA Issues Advisory Task Force; has served on the OVMA Educational Committee for more than 20 years; and developed the animal welfare educational track for the Oregon Veterinary Conference, also helping the association with guidelines for veterinary hospice care. Veterinary Service Award: Britta Bavaresco, Portland. Bavaresco is a founding partner at Animal Shelter Alliance of Portland, a coalition of local animal shelters, county animal services, and professional veterinary associations in the Portland metro area. The alliance, established to end the euthanasia of adoptable dogs and cats, has reduced the number of dogs and cats euthanatized in Portland area member shelters by 65 percent. Technician of the Year: Dolores Galindo, Gresham. A certified veterinary technician, Galindo has served as lead technician for Portland Community College’s Veterinary Technology Program for almost 20 years. In addition to teaching, she is an adviser for the veterinary technology club, assists in labs taught by other instructors, coordinates the dog behavior training sessions, and oversees the student-run Pet Adoption Committee. Galindo is president-elect of the Oregon Veterinary Technician and Assistant Association and was the first CVT to serve on the Oregon Veterinary Medical Examining Board. Her service on the board from 2003-2011 included a year as chair. Outstanding Industry Representative: Jay Donkers, Oregon City. Donkers recently retired from Zoetis, formerly Pfizer Animal Health, after 26 years of service. During his career with Zoetis, he served as a therapeutic specialist for more than 20 years and was a strategic account manager for five years. Donkers volunteers with Project Contact Africa, a nonprofit organization that brings medical relief teams into schools within the slums of Kenya. President’s Award: Salem Friends of Felines, Salem. A nonprofit, no-kill cat shelter, SFOF has adopted out more than 6,700 cats since 2004. SFOF also serves as a volunteer rescue organization that focuses on the welfare of cats in the Salem area.
Business: Discussions were held on pet prescriptions and retail pharmacies, scope of veterinary practice issues, the increasing debt load of veterinary students and decreasing salaries of new graduates, and the Partners for Healthy Pets program. The association adopted a category of membership for veterinary students at the Oregon State University College of Veterinary Medicine but disapproved an affiliate category of membership proposed for individuals such as industry representatives, technicians, and practice managers.
Officials: Drs. Todd McNabb, Clackamas, president; Steve Amsberry, Corvallis, president-elect; Jay B. Fineman, Newport, treasurer; and Sheri Morris, Keizer, immediate past president