BY: Melissa Andrasik-Catton, RVT, BS
Tucked away in every nook and cranny of his brain was a wealth of knowledge readily shared with anyone asking for help on the common or obscure. He possessed a talent unmatched in unraveling the toughest of internal medicine cases. He could surprise you with his sense of humor, often shared when you least expected it. He had a passion for a Midwestern veterinary community that grew into an unintended legacy.
Jeff Dennis never sought praise or accolades for his impact on a patient, person, or profession. In fact, he shrugged compliments off as if he didn’t do anything special. But for those of us that knew and loved him, we recognize the amazing impact he had on our professional and personal lives and the devastating loss that we feel by his premature departure.
When we look back at his impactful career, we see that he truly left his mark on the Kansas City veterinary scene and beyond. Jeff graduated from Purdue’s School of Veterinary Medicine in 1985 and completed his internal medicine residency at Michigan State University in 1992. When he chose Kansas City, the city gained a champion. A champion for the mission of providing the best medical care to the area’s pets without their owners having to travel to a university. He felt strongly that pets should have access to advanced medicine and that establishing a partnership between specialty and general practitioners was the way to achieve this. As many of you know, Jeff gave of himself endlessly, all hours of the day and night, to help referring veterinarians manage cases of all kinds. Jeff appreciated and respected that partnership and built his philosophy of serving the community around that idea.
Jeff was a visionary. He paved the way with his many ideas and initiatives; complacency was not an option for him. From 1992-1996 I would watch Jeff pace around our small clinic at 103rd and Metcalf working to build his practice and brimming with a desire to serve more animals in more ways. These years, out of my 26 knowing and working with him, were some of my favorite as I was part of a VERY small, very dedicated group of specialists, emergency doctors, and technicians working hard to do our best. You could sense that Jeff wanted more, more for the veterinary community he was growing to love. He found a way forward by starting, through merger, Veterinary Specialty and Emergency Center (VSEC) in 1996. He and his partners, and especially his friend Joe Desch, changed the way specialty and emergency medicine could serve a wider, more integrated purpose among the general veterinary population. And wow, what a success! We were all so proud of what had been accomplished and how we were growing into a source of expanded service and education for owners and veterinarians alike. Jeff was always too humble to take pride in the accomplishment or to accept the praises.
One of Jeff’s most important and impactful achievements was getting approval for VSEC to have an in-house residency program; at the time this was almost exclusively the domain of universities. The success and longevity of the program is a true testament to Jeff’s dedication to providing more for the greater veterinary community. I think of all the program’s amazing interns and residents that are now spread across the nation serving pets and their owners in many capacities in a way fitting of Jeff’s teachings. His influence continues to reach the masses.
On a national level, Jeff felt a need for specialty hospitals to have a voice on a larger scale since non-university affiliated specialty hospitals were pretty rare at the time. He knew there was a need to discuss business matters unique to specialty hospitals and to pave the way for successful partnerships with general practice veterinarians. He co-founded and was the first president of Veterinary Specialty Practice Alliance (VSPA), which is a thriving organization to this day. The friendships he made through VSPA lead to another chapter in his career. In 2008, he was a founding member of BluePearl Veterinary Partners. The merger of VSEC and Florida Veterinary Specialists lead to what is now one of the largest referral practice groups with hospitals all over the nation.
You can’t throw a stone without hitting someone that has been touched by Jeff’s generosity and contributions. Ever heard of Frostbite or Heatstroke? How about the Pet Telethon or Dog and Jog? What about the VSEC (BluePearl) newsletters? Jeff would provide free CE’s for breed clubs and have Girl and Boy Scout troops tour the clinic, do activities and learn about veterinary medicine. He offered pet owner education lectures and got involved in most community events like Dogtoberfest. These outreach programs were so important to him and he put his all into making these events as good as they could be. His desire to educate owners, veterinarians and technicians, to encourage philanthropy, and to give back to “his” community was seen in all different arenas. I pray that he knows how much all of his efforts meant and continue to mean to Kansas City.
How do I describe what Jeff meant to me? He was by far one of the most influential people in my life. After Jeff’s death, many of the “originals” (those that worked with him in the early years) got together and discussed his amazing attributes. We talked about the selfless manner in which he conducted his daily activities; he truly wanted what was best for everyone. We remembered how he freely gave of his knowledge, money, and time, at great personal cost to him and his family. He was a friend, mentor, and confidant. He really could make you mad in one breath then make it all better in the next. He challenged you to be your best and sometimes was blunt about your shortcomings. In fact, you often would work even harder and do better just to prove him wrong…accomplishing exactly what he intended. You don’t forget a boss that put his coworkers ahead of himself in so many ways like staying late to do dishes, laundry, and clean cages. It was refreshing to grow with a company where the motto was “treat everyone equally”. He truly felt that everyone from kennel staff to receptionists to doctors should be treated the same; benefits the same, respect and recognition the same, and most importantly, appreciation the same. We all feel blessed to have been part of such an amazing man’s life.
Jeff Dennis was a rock. A rock for his employees, his colleagues, his patient’s owners, and his local community. So why did the rock break? I can’t write this article without touching on his suicide which left this entire Kansas City veterinary community reeling. It’s an indescribable loss for his family as well as those who were close to him. We wish we had answers as we feel hurt, angry, despairing, and confused. Many didn’t know what to do with the news of Jeff’s passing, myself included as I was at a complete loss. A very good friend and shared colleague of his gave me some of the best advice when we heard the news. She said, “At times it’s been helpful to think of how Jeff would process something like this – absorb the relevant information, acknowledge the impact it has, take care of those that need help, and all at the same time, don’t make a big fuss. His quiet, yet purposeful manner has always been something I’ve admired, felt comfort from, and tried to emulate as often as I could.” These words helped me tremendously and I hope anyone reading this finds some comfort in them too.
So why am I writing this piece now? First and foremost, Jeff’s impact on the KC veterinary community should never be forgotten. Additionally, May is mental health awareness month, and the topics of mental health and suicide are relevant to us all. His daughter so beautifully and bravely stood up at Jeff’s celebration of life and asked everyone to be aware of the magnitude of the impact that chronic illness has on someone’s life. We know that mental illness often accompanies chronic physical pain, which Jeff had been living with for some time. When you physically struggle just to make it through the day it takes its toll on mental health. She also asked for everyone to reach out often to those they care about whether they are struggling with any chronic illness or general mental health concern or not. In other words, don’t sit idly by when just asking how someone is doing may make the difference. Be kind and understanding; just be there for them.
My final words are to say Jeff, I love you, thank you and miss you and hope you know what you meant to this grateful Midwestern town. My words to his family are thank you for sharing him with us all these years as I know his dedication to his work often kept him away from home. My hope for Kansas City is that everyone focuses on the 10,000 amazing things Jeff Dennis did for this community and to be mindful of, but not to dwell on, the manner of his departure.
Contributions: Solve ME/CFS Initiative: 5455 Wilshire Blvd, #1903, Los Angeles, CA 90006. solve CFS@solveCFS.org | www.solveCFS.org
