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JOSH – lead veterinary technician
Josh grew up in rural Jacksonville/Murrayville. He always has loved animals, always trying to train them and save them! His mom had a dog grooming shop in their home. Josh started working at a veterinarian office when he was in 6th grade. He loves animals, and loves talking about behavior problems with owners as well as ways to solve them. Josh has also worked for Invisible Fence training dogs for the underground fencing system and has administered behavior lessons for several years. Josh got married in 2015. Josh and Stephanie have one six year old girl Jada that is just as crazy about animals as they are. They have two pit bulls and one beagle/boxer: Curby, Nova, and Rico. They also have three cats: Dennis, Trudy, and Sparticus. Their family resides in Pawnee. Josh enjoys music being outside, and grilling. He volunteers for Illinois Humane, works at a camp once a year for disabled adults and kids, and he plays drums at Koke Mill Christian Church. He has been on several mission trips to Mexico. |
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BETSY – office manager
Betsy grew up on a farm as a child. She always had several dogs and cats growing up on the farm. She always has had a love for dogs and cats. She is married and has a family of two grown children, including three grandchildren and one great grandchild. She has lived in Springfield for 30 some years. She is a member of Southernview Chapel Church in Springfield. She started working at West Lake Animal Hospital because she wanted to help people with the care of their pets. Betsy at present has 3 cats and 2 dogs. She has acquired many cats while working here that have since passed on. She feels it is very rewarding to help people understand the importance of taking the best care of their pets. She also feels her co-workers and doctors are her second family. We all try to take care of each other here. She couldn’t have found a better place to work and try to make a difference in people’s lives and the lives of their pets. |
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SUE – receptionist
Sue grew up on the south side of Chicago, graduating from St. Francis de Sales High School. She received her BS from Western Illinois University, her MS from Illinois State University and her Education Administrative Certification from Sangamon State. Sue began her career in education in 1976, in Virginia, Illinois. In 1982, she secured a position in the Ball-Chatham school district where she spent 28 years teaching, coaching and/or serving as athletic director. Although she retired in 2010, she continues to coach cross country at Glenwood Middle School and serve as Huddle Leader for the Fellowship of Christian Athletes at Glenwood High School. She has a Golden Retriever, Augie. Augie was Sue’s retirement gift from the faculty and staff at Glenwood Middle School. Sue loves working with the wonderful veterinarians and support staff at West Lake Animal Hospital. |
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REBECCA – receptionist
Rebecca grew up in Southeast Missouri on a farm. She moved to Illinois to start a career with the State of Illinois. She is now retired and decided to work in a “fun” place with puppies and kittens. She loves to travel to warm beaches and sunshine! She has one son and two dogs, Maddie and Macy. |
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KENNEDY - veterinary technician
Kennedy lived in Springfield the first half of her childhood and then moved to St. Louis. After spending 7 years in St. Louis, she made the decision to come home to Springfield to spend more time with her younger brother and two year old niece. While in St. Louis, she started her very first job at a local vet clinic. She always had a passion for animals and felt this was the perfect first job for her. Kennedy has finished one year of general education courses at a community college and plans to finish school and begin pre-med at UIS. She would like to attend veterinary school to work with big cats (lions, tigers, etc) with the goal of opening a retirement sanctuary for circus and zoo cats. Kennedy grew up with a Golden Retriever named Daisy, who passed away a short time ago and she just adopted a cat named Darwin from Illinois Humane.. |
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CAROL - receptionist
Carol has lived in Springfield all of her life. Recently, after 30 years of service, she retired from the State of Illinois. Carol loves spending time training her dogs – Jack and Daffy – and has placed several AKC obedience titles on her dogs. Her dog, Daffy, most recently received her AKC Tracking Dog title. Her dog Jack is a certified therapy dog and as such, Carol and Jack visit many local nursing homes and hospitals in central Illinois. Carol also does agility with both dogs. Besides working with her dogs, Carol loves to bake, garden and camp. |
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STEVE - veterinary assistant
Steve grew up in Peoria Heights, IL. He and his family recently moved to Jacksonville so his son could attend Illinois School for the Deaf. He is a certified veterinary assistant and has worked and volunteered with several rescue groups before coming to West Lake. Steve currently volunteers with PAWS in Jacksonville and is a licensed foster with the Illinois Deptartment of Agriculture. He has a passion for rescue, especially the special cases. Steve has fostered and nurtured several special needs dogs and never meets a dog he can't become friends with. At home he has 2 dogs, a cat, and 1 foster : Sky, Princess, Emory, and Apollo. |
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ABBY – veterinary technician
Abby was born and raised in Springfield and has lived here her whole life as the youngest of 5 kids! She went to Sacred Heart Griffin High School where she ran track and played golf. In May of 2017, she received her BS in Animal Sciences from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and hopes to go on to Veterinary School next year. She has worked in many different animal settings from veterinary clinics, to beef cattle farms, to Springfield’s very own APL. She spends her free time going for runs in the park and playing Frisbee with her black lab Maggie. Abby hopes to one day be a mixed animal veterinarian with a specialty in orthopedics. |
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ASHLEY - veterinary assistant
Ashley was born and raised here in Central Illinios. She attended Rochester schools and graduated in 2011. She has always been passionate about caring for animals. In January of 2017 she decided to register for the Veterinary Assistant program through LLCC and received her certificate of completion in June. She plans to eventually take courses online to become a certified veterinary technician. She doesn’t currently have any pets of her own, but she does enjoy spending time with her grandparents dog Marlowe, as well as the cat, Tim-Tam that she house sits for. In her free time she enjoys spending time with her friends and family, listening to music, traveling, and attending concerts. |
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SHELLIE - veterinary assistant, receptionist
Shellie was born and raised in Central Illinois, and she is a senior at Rochester High School. Ever since she was a little girl she has loved animals, and next fall she will be attending Mississippi State University to study Animal Sciences with a concentration in Pre-Veterinary Medicine. She loves reading, playing volleyball, and spending time with family and friends. She has only one dog, a yellow lab named Ivy, although she would definitely have more pets if her parents would let her. |
