In Memory – June 19, 2025

L.J. Absher

Dr. Absher (Texas A&M ’72), 78, Arlington, Texas, died May 21, 2025. He owned a small animal practice in Arlington, Texas, for more than 50 years. Dr. Absher is survived by his wife, Elizabeth; two daughters; four grandchildren; four great-grandchildren; and a brother.

Geneva Keene Acor

Dr. Acor (Georgia ’66), 82, Winter Garden, Florida, died May 6, 2025. She began her career working in Orlando, Florida. Dr. Acor subsequently founded Westside Animal Hospital, a small animal practice in Vero Beach, Florida, where she practiced until the late 1980s. She later earned a master’s in environmental engineering from the Florida Institute of Technology and worked several years in the area of coastal ecosystems.

Dr. Acor then became involved in small animal nutrition and veterinary technician education, teaching technician courses across the country and online, and serving as a liaison with veterinary schools and colleges and veterinary technician programs in the U.S. and Caribbean, focusing on small animal nutrition. During that time, she directed the veterinary technology program at Brevard Community College in Cocoa, Florida. Dr. Acor also served as a consultant in education and marketing.

A past president of the Florida VMA (FVMA), she was named FVMA Veterinarian of the Year in 1999. Dr. Acor is survived by her husband, Milton Gillespie, and a son. Memorials may be made to the Morris Animal Foundation, 720 S. Colorado Blvd., Suite 174A, Denver, CO 80246.

Phillip L. Dalton

Dr. Dalton (Ross ’14), 55, Hurt, Virginia, died April 22, 2025. He practiced at Gretna Animal Clinic in Gretna, Virginia. A 10-year veteran of the Marine Corps, Dr. Dalton served during the Operation Desert Shield and Desert Storm campaigns. He is survived by his wife, Tamara, and a sister and a brother. Memorials may be made to the Marine Corps Scholarship Foundation, 909 N. Washington St., Suite 400, Alexandria, VA 22314.

Elmer R. Graber

Dr. Graber (Michigan State ’55), 93, Granger, Indiana, died May 19, 2025. Following graduation, he served two years as a captain in the Air Force. During that time, Dr. Graber worked as a staff veterinarian, base veterinarian, and public health officer. In 1958, he established Roseland Animal Clinic in South Bend, Indiana. Dr. Graber later co-established Ireland Animal Clinic in South Bend and Cat Care Clinic in Mishawaka, Indiana. He also served as a consultant on practice management. Dr. Graber retired in 1992.

Active in organized veterinary medicine, he was a past president of the Michiana VMA and was a member of the Indiana and Michigan VMAs and American Animal Hospital Association. Dr. Graber also served as a trustee of what is now known as the AVMA Trust. He was a member of the Kiwanis Club of South Bend, Southwest Michigan Land Conservancy, and Fernwood Botanical Garden. Dr. Graber’s daughter, three grandchildren, and six great-grandchildren survive him. Memorials may be made to Resurrection Lutheran Academy, 6840 Nimtz Parkway, South Bend, IN 46628, or Our Redeemer Lutheran Church, 805 S. 29th St., South Bend, IN 46615.

John C. Lee

Dr. Lee (Colorado State ’59), 89, Nampa, Idaho, died May 4, 2025. He was a partner at Meridian Veterinary Clinic, a mixed animal practice in Meridian, Idaho, for more than 30 years prior to retirement in 1994. Active in efforts to conserve endangered raptors, Dr. Lee was also involved with the Condor recovery program in California and the World Center for Birds of Prey in Boise, Idaho. He is survived by a daughter, three sons, eight grandchildren, 11 great-grandchildren, a sister, and a brother. Dr. Lee’s brother, Dr. Martin Lee (Colorado State ’73), and granddaughter, Dr. Monika Jones (Colorado State ’13), are also veterinarians. Memorials may be made to Mission Aviation Fellowship, P.O. Box 47, Nampa, ID 83653.

John M. (Jack) Leonard

Dr. Leonard (Pennsylvania ’79), 71, Ocala, Florida, died May 28, 2025. An equine veterinarian, he was the founder of Fox Run Equine Center in Apollo, Pennsylvania. Dr. Leonard spent a large part of his career in Egypt, where he had a consulting practice based in Cairo. He is survived by his wife, Rasha, and a grandson.

A version of this story appears in the August 2025 print issue of JAVMA

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