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| Michael
Lavroff Biography: I was born in Turkey, raised in the Netherlands (where I met my wife as a toddler) and immigrated to Canada when I was 14 years old. I wanted to be a veterinarian from the age of about 12 because it always intrigued me how someone could determine what was wrong with an animal and then turn around and fix the problem! It always seemed to me to be a great way to use your hands and mind in a creative and constructive way. I graduated from the Western College of Veterinary Medicine in Saskatoon, SK in 1985 at the tender age of 23. My first job was in Langley where I spent 3 ˝ years working with small animals, farm animals, and horses. This gave me a broad range of experience from which I still draw on a regular basis. In 1989, my family and I moved to Kelowna where, initially, I worked with horses as well as small animals. The small animal clinic at that time was called Central Valley Veterinary Clinic. After our family started to grow, it became apparent that, if I were going to have any kind of family life, I would have to discontinue trying to do the horse practice as well. Consequently, I chose to sell my interest in the horse practice and started concentrating on the small animals in 1992. In December of 1998, the practice moved from the old Springfield Rd. location to the (then) brand new Petcetera Store on Harvey Avenue. The name of the clinic was changed to "Vetcetera Pet Hospital, Kelowna, owned and operated by Central Valley Veterinary Clinic, Inc.". We kept the Central Valley designation so as not to lose our identity completely within the Petcetera conglomerate. The years at Petcetera had their ups and downs. On the upside, due to the central and high-profile location, the practice more than doubled its clientele during those years; on the downside, we totally outgrew our space the last few years to the point where we gradually all suffered from "crowding stress". The decision to move the practice became easy in the end since, for all the staff's mental well being, we just had to have more space! With no exception, we are all very excited about the move to North Glenmore. The area is a very beautiful part of Kelowna with lots of growth. We have gone back to the name "Central Valley Veterinary" but have changed the designation to "Hospital" instead of "Clinic" to reflect the larger size and scope of the practice. The hospital is more than twice the size of our Petcetera location and I've been able to design it all myself. We have windows, a park next door and some personal space as well! For me, personally, it's like coming home as my family has resided in the area for the last 16 years so it's got a real "homey" feel to it. I expect all the staff and clients to be very happy. On a personal level, life is very full and exciting. Last year, my wife Janine and I had a surprise new arrival in our family-a new baby girl by the name of Naomi! We are having a blast with her! Never the less, between the toddler, three teenagers (Alex, Olivia, and Robyn) and the new practice opening, it's been an extremely busy year! Unfortunately, we lost both our lovely Golden Retrievers to cancer during the past year as well. Hopefully 2007 will be a year to re-balance, enjoy my family and enjoy the new practice. Finally, it is my goal for this veterinary hospital that your pets and their people will be treated as God would have us treat them, with dignity and compassion. We want to treat your pet as a valued family member and help you take the best possible care of it. At the same time, we all want to enjoy ourselves while we're doing that! Look forward to seeing you and your best friend the next time you need us! Dr. Michael Lavroff, founder of Central Valley Veterinary Hospital Inc. |
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| Kathy
Rasmussen Biography:
I grew up on a small hobby farm in Lyndyn, Washington, just south the B.C. border. Throughout my childhood we had a wide variety of pets and livestock, giving me lots of opportunity to play and work outside. By the time I was in second grade, I remember knowing I wanted to be a veterinarian. After high school I spent four years at Dordt College, an excellent small liberal arts college in Sioux Center, Iowa. There I received my biology degree and lots of great life experience and perspective on what my life might be about. I also spent may hours voluteering with a group of local vets-- a requirement before applying to vet school. That practice dealt primarily with feedlots but also some hog and dairy farms. During my senior year spring break, the student work project I went on worked at an inner city mission in Chicago. While there I met John Gerrits, the seminary intern (originally from Nova Scotia) who was coordinating these job projects. Thus began a four year long distance relationship as he finished his final year of seminary and then began work in a church in rural eastern Ontario, and I entered vet school. From 1988-1992 I attended Washington State University Veterinary College in Pullman. The summer after I graduated John and I were married and I moved to Eastern Ontario to join him. I began working in a small animal clinic in Morrisburg and spent the next six years there. During that time we enjoyed the small community atmosphere, the incredible history of that area along the St. Lawrence River, and being 45 minutes south of Ottawa and all that had to offer. Our son, Caleb was born during that time as well. In 1998 we moved to Kelowna after John accepted a call to a church here. During our time in Kelowna we have also had a daughter, Kevlyn. Our pet population now stands at a dog named "Cassie," a cat named "Yahoo," and several various fish. Our hobbies generally involve camping, hiking and being outside in our garden/yard as much as possible. Since being in Kelowna, I have had the priviledge of working with Dr.Mike Lavroff and "the gang." My "work family" has been constantly supportive and encouraging, challenging me to grow and learn. It's wonderful working in such a team environment. I'm so glad to have the opportunity to be part of the lives of our patients and their families. |
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| Kate
Kelly Biography:
Although I have always had a strong interest in animals, I did not discover my calling as a veterinarian until I did a co-op placement in high school at a busy veterinary clinic in Peterborough, ON area where I was born and raised. After witnessing the veterinarians there performing various surgeries, working through challenging cases or satisfied in discovering a diagnosis, it did not take me long to realize that I was meant to be in the middle of it all. I was hired on at that clinic and worked there for 7 years in various different job positions from kennel helper to receptionist to veterinary assistant/ technician. In the midst of it all, I celebrated the thrill of being accepted into the Ontario Veterinary College in Guelph, ON to study to become a veterinarian. It was a challenging 6 years of school, but worth every second of the late night studying, long days of classes and on-call hours and I could always find motivation to tough it out from my all-time favourite patient, our family dog “Oreo”. At 15 years of age, blind and deaf, she still never ceases to amaze me and continues to be one of the main reasons why I try to strive to become a better veterinarian every day! I graduated from the Ontario Veterinary College in Guelph, Ontario in the spring of 2007 and it was at that time that my boyfriend, Adam, and I decided it was time for a change of scenery. In August of 2007, we made the move to the beautiful Okanagan where we currently live in Kelowna and couldn’t be happier with everything that it has to offer! We now know why B.C. is often implied to stand for “Beautiful Country” (along with the other popular, “Bring Cash”)! As if living in Kelowna isn’t good enough, I have also been extremely fortunate to become part of the team here at Central Valley Veterinary Hospital and love being able to work alongside people who are so supportive, caring and dedicated. I love my job every day and find it so rewarding to be able to help each individual patient and their families in every way that I know how. To me, being a veterinarian is not just a career, but a true passion- and one that I look forward to continuing to develop and enjoy in the years to come! |
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