Happy New Year KCVMA members!  My name is Todd Taylor, and I am your 2017 KCVMA President.  I hope this newsletter finds you all well, and that life is calming down a little bit after the hectic travel and social schedules that come with the holiday season.

I’ll start with sharing a little bit about myself and of my veterinary career path that has led me to where I am today.  My wife, Christina, and I have been blessed with the three children that you can see in the attached picture (I really am a dad now; I’m even making you all look at pictures of my kids in the KCVMA Newsletter!!!)  Most of the time I have away from work is spent with my wife and kids or hauling them around to and from their busy social schedules and activities (I don’t remember what I liked to do before kids, it seems like so long ago).

I received my undergraduate degree in Biology locally from William Jewell College and am a 2007 graduate from the University of Missouri Veterinary School.  After graduation, I worked in two different mixed animal practices in the greater Kansas City area, and then in 2012 I accepted a role here with Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica as a Technical Services Veterinarian.  There really are so many different jobs and opportunities for us as veterinarians that we really didn’t hear about while we were in school.  There can be a big difference in what we envisioned our veterinary careers to be like while in veterinary school, and what exciting opportunities we experience throughout our careers.

I have been a member of the KCVMA board since 2012 and have really enjoyed this foray into organized veterinary medicine.  The networking and continuing education opportunities that we as KCVMA members have can be very instrumental in our growth as veterinarians as well as our job opportunities.

And finally, as we have noted throughout the year, the KCVMA is transitioning away from the paper version of the newsletter, and moving towards all online content.  This will be our final newsletter that we mail out to our membership.  We are upgrading our website to make it more user friendly on mobile devices, and will be continuing to improve and increase our presence on both Facebook and Twitter.  Give us a follow to stay up to date on what is happening here in our veterinary community.

Thank you and I hope you all have a great 2017!