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 1 dog.  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.

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.  ​

ASHLEY - veterinary technician
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.  

LAUREN - veterinary assistant
Lauren has lived in the Williamsville/Sherman area for her whole life. She attended Williamsville High School and graduated in 2016. She is currently working towards her degree in Chemistry at LLCC. She grew up around all varieties of pets and currently has two dogs, Bella and Roxanne. She enjoys spending her free time listening to and playing music, as well as hiking with her dog, Roxie.

HANNAH - receptionist
Hannah grew up in East Central Illinois. She received her BS from Central Christian College of the Bible. She just recently moved to Williamsville with her husband, Austin. She enjoys volunteering at Williamsville Christian Church, traveling, and walking her dogs. She has two Yorkiepoos, Winnie and Norrie. She plans to attend Lincoln Christian University to attain her Master’s degree in counseling. So far she has really enjoyed working at West Lake Animal Hospital.

KALYN - receptionist
Kay was born and raised here in Central Illinois, she graduated from Rochester High School and started her career in a dental office in town. She has one son, Quentin. Her family always had animals, right now they have two Siberian Huskies and two Bernese Mountain dogs in the house! Kay's hobbies include spending time with family, traveling, movies, and music.  She has always loved animals and working with the public. Kay really likes the doctors and staff at West Lake who are so caring and attentive to the animals they treat.

CARY - veterinary assistant
Cary was born and raised in central Illinois. She has always had a passion for animals and would bring every animal she could home. She attended Jacksonville High School and graduated in 2013. She then joined the Illinois Army National Guard where she went to Ft. Sill, Oklahoma and Ft. Leonard Wood, Missouri for training. After training she went on to receive her BS in Animal Sciences from the University of Illinois. During her time at U of I she discovered her love of working with large animals. She joined a western show riding team and worked at the dairy farm where she fell in love with cattle.  Cary plans on continuing her education to become a large and small animal veterinarian. After graduating from U of I, Cary went on to receive her certifications in horse and cattle massage therapy, raindrop therapy for horses and dogs, and rehabilitation therapy for horses. In her spare time she loves to ride and show horses, snuggle with her dog, Outlaw, love on her steer Scooby, and bake.

CYNDI – receptionist
Cyndi has lived in the Springfield area her entire life.  She attended Northeast Missouri State University and graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration.  Cyndi began her career with the state of Illinois while raising her three children.  The “children” are now grown enjoying their own lives but still keeping Cyndi on her toes!  Cyndi is planning for her retirement from the state and beginning quilting classes and possibly piano lessons.  Five dogs live with Cyndi – getting spoiled daily – and enjoying their visits to Mom’s new work, West Lake!

PATRICK – senior veterinary technician
Patrick was born and raised in Decatur Illinois. He developed a passion for animals while first working with them in the U.S Army.  Patrick has worked as a veterinary technician for the past 8 years while living in Chicago and Tampa, Florida. He joined us here at West Lake Animal Hospital in August of 2018 and loves the staff and our wonderful clients. Patrick is thoroughly impressed and motivated by the level of care and compassion that the entire staff exhibits on a daily basis and appreciates the love shown by our clients to their furry loved ones. Patrick has an amazing wife and son in Jen and James.  In his free time Patrick enjoys golfing, hiking, playing tennis and anything involving his family.

JULIE – receptionist
Julie grew up on the north end of Springfield graduating from Lanphier High School.  She retired in July 2019 with 36 years of service with the Illinois Department of Transportation and joined the West Lake family in September 2019.  She is married and has two sons.
As far back as she can remember, Julie always had a dog for a pet.  Currently, there are two dogs in her family.  They adopted Sam in April 2018.  Sam is her husband’s hunting companion in the winter months, but has become her “porch” buddy this summer.  Julie can’t leave out her son’s dog, Beanie.  Beanie has become part of their family too.  In Julie’s spare time, she enjoys spending time with family and friends, crafting, and doing household projects.

HANNAH - receptionist 
Hannah grew up in Central Illinois and graduated Williamsville High School in 2019.  She now attends Lincoln Land Community College in hopes of transferring to Southern Illinois University Carbondale to become a dental hygienist.  Hannah enjoys traveling, attending concerts, and spending time with friends and family.  Her family has always had animals running around the house, and they currently have a Rottweiler named Koda and two cats named Harley and Smokey.  Hannah’s favorite part of her job is seeing the love owners have for their animals and the welcoming and encouraging environment the staff at West Lake presents.