Award Recipients Honored at 2015 AASV Annual Meeting

March 25, 2015 — 

The American Association of Swine Veterinarians (AASV) honored five members for their contributions to the association and the swine industry. Dr Randy Jones, 2011 AASV president, presented the awards at the association’s annual meeting March 2 in Orlando, FL.

Young Swine Veterinarian of the Year Award

The American Association of Swine Veterinarian’s Young Swine Veterinarian of the Year Award was presented to Dr Megan Inskeep during the 46th Annual Meeting of the AASV in Orlando, FL. It is given annually to an AASV member five or less years post-graduation who has demonstrated the ideals of exemplary service and proficiency early in his or her career.

Dr. Inskeep grew up in Wilson, NC where her parents, Gene and Susan Nemechek still reside. Exposure to farm life came at a very early age for Dr Inskeep. She developed an interest in animals beginning on her grandparents’ dairy farm, visiting pig farms with her veterinarian dad and working in a small animal clinic during high school. These experiences sparked her interest in becoming a veterinarian. She worked two summers on sow farms gaining experience in farrowing and gestation barns.

Majoring in Animal Science as an undergraduate at North Carolina State University, she was active in numerous clubs and organizations. She was among the first class of Food Animal Scholars accepted into the NCSU College of Veterinary Medicine. She earned her DVM in 2010. She participated in the National Pork Board’s Operation Main Street as a student presenter and continues to participate as a practitioner. To date, she has given more than 30 presentations to civics groups and high schools in her area.

She was active all 4 years in the Swine Club and the Bovine Club at the veterinary school. She served as president of the swine club her junior year, organizing pig picking lunch fund raisers and program speakers for the club meetings. She says that she will never forget the generosity of the veterinarians and their families and the lifelong friendships she made during numerous veterinary internships at swine practices throughout the Midwest. She continues that spirit of generosity by hosting numerous veterinary students and offering them the opportunity to experience swine veterinary practice and the modern swine industry. She received the Swine Proficiency Award at the conclusion of her senior year of veterinary school.

“I am very honored to receive this award, and feel very fortunate to be a part of such a remarkable organization and industry. I can’t begin to give enough thanks to my family and mentors over the years for their support, and hope that I can give back as much as they have given to me,” commented Dr Inskeep.

Currently, she is a veterinarian at Rensselaer Swine Services with Dr Tom Gillespie. She also works with Dr. Chuck Hannon and Donor Solutions, Inc. specializing in cattle donor and reproductive services. She lives in Rensselaer, IN with her husband Bryan Inskeep, and they are expecting their first child in August.

Technical Services/Allied Industry Veterinarian of the Year Award

Dr Kerry Keffaber received the American Association of Swine Veterinarians’ Technical Services/Allied Industry Veterinarian of the Year Award. Established in 2008, the award recognizes swine industry veterinarians who have demonstrated an unusual degree of proficiency and effectiveness in delivery of veterinary service to their companies and their clients as well as given tirelessly in service to the AASV and the swine industry.

Dr Keffaber was recognized for his years in technical service at Elanco Animal Health. Since joining Elanco in 2002 as a Swine Technical Services Consultant, he has served numerous roles including Director of Technical Consulting in the Swine Business Unit and Director of Swine Innovation. His current title is Advisor Scientific Affairs & Policy. In this role, he leads global and US efforts to help others in regulatory, government and the food supply chain stay informed and establish policy on current global animal health, scientific research, and food safety topics . In addition, he participated in the first Elanco-sponsored study tour to Cameroon, Africa with Heifer International with a group of swine practitioners.

Dr Keffaber received his BS, and DVM (1981) from Purdue University. Following graduation, Dr Keffaber joined the Manchester Veterinary Clinic where he focused on large animal and swine. In 1987, he founded the Swine Health Center in Roann, IN where he practiced until joining Elanco Animal Health. Dr. Duane Long continued the practice.

Active in the AASV since 1981, Dr Keffaber served as a district director for two terms and as president of the Association in 2008. In addition, he has chaired the AASV PRRS subcommittee and participated on several planning committees for the association’s annual program. He was also a graduate of the inaugural Executive Veterinary Program in Swine Health Management class at the University of Illinois.

When asked to comment on what the award meant to him, Dr Keffaber said, “AASV is filled with quality people that are excellent scientists and great examples of leadership and integrity, to be recognized with this honor is humbling and quite a nice surprise and serves as a challenge to continue to work to help animals and people.”

Dr Keffaber and his wife, Betsy, reside in Fishers, IN. They have three children (Brad, Megan and Abbey) and four grandchildren with one other on the way.

Howard Dunne Memorial Award

Dr Rodney “Butch” Baker received the American Association of Swine Veterinarians’ 2015 Howard Dunne Memorial Award during the association’s 46th Annual Meeting March 2 in Orlando, FL. The award recognizes an AASV member who has made important contributions and provided outstanding service to the association and the swine industry.

Dr Baker was raised on a small, diversified farm in Owensboro, KY where he gained an early appreciation for farm life, livestock and veterinary medicine. He received his DVM from the Auburn University College of Veterinary Medicine in 1978 and earned a master’s degree in veterinary diagnostics and production animal medicine from Iowa State University in 1999.

Dr Baker joined Iowa State University in 2006 as a senior clinician in the ISU College of Veterinary Medicine. Previously, Baker served as partner in a multi-veterinarian multi-location practice primarily involved in food animal practice. He served as an Area Veterinary Consultant for the Pig Improvement Company and numerous other producers during the transformation of the US pork industry to the modern structure of today. After leaving practice he worked for Bayer Animal Health, Pig Improvement Company (PIC), Premium Standard Farms (PSF) and North Carolina State University. Dr Baker also recently served as the interim director of the Iowa Pork Industry Center at ISU. He is part owner of a 2,400-sow breed-to-wean farm in Georgia and another farm in Kentucky that is dedicated to sow well-being research and leased to Cargill Meat solutions.

Dr Baker became a member of AASV in 1978 and president of the Association in 2009. He has served on numerous AASV issue-based committees and AASV Program Planning Committees as well as the AASV Foundation Auction Committee and AASV Foundation Board. He is also an AASV Foundation Heritage Fellow. In 2012, he was honored as the Agriculture Alumni of the Year by Western Kentucky University’s Ogden College of Science and Technology. He was recognized as a Master of the Pork Industry by National Hog Farmer magazine in 2013 and received the Honorary Master Pork Producer plaque at the 43rd annual Iowa Pork Congress on February 1, 2015.

When asked what it meant to him to receive the Howard Dunne Memorial Award, he responded, “I am truly honored and humbled by this unexpected surprise. It is certainly the most appreciated recognition of my long career. I thank the AASV awards committee for choosing me as the recipient.”

Butch and his wife, Emma, currently reside in Ames, IA. They have three children (Brad, Amy and Will) and three grandchildren (Marissa, Paige, and Reith).

Meritorious Service Award

Dr Howard Hill was named the 2015 recipient of the American Association of Swine Veterinarians’ Meritorious Service Award. The award recognizes individuals who have provided outstanding service to the AASV. A native of southern California, Dr Hill earned his DVM degree from the University of California-Davis in 1969. Hill spent a year in private practice in Vista, CA before deciding to pursue his master’s degree (1972) and Ph.D. (1974) in veterinary microbiology from Iowa State University.

Dr Hill retired as the director of animal well-being for Iowa Select Farms at the end of 2012 but has been retained as an advisor with focus on animal well-being. Hill began his career with Iowa Select Farms in 2000, when he joined the company as director of production. In 2001, he was promoted to chief operating officer and continued in that role until 2009.

Hill served as director of veterinary services and multiplication for Murphy Family Farms (1994 – 2000) in Rose Hill, N.C. Previously, Hill served as head of veterinary microbiology in the Iowa State University Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory (1974 – 1994).

Dr Hill joined AASV in 1979. He has served on AASV Program Planning Committees and as AASV President in 1996. In addition, he received the Howard Dunne Memorial Award in 1992 and is an AASV Foundation Leman Fellow. He received Iowa State University’s Science with Practice Award in 2011. Hill was one of nine veterinarians appointed to serve on the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Advisory Committee on Animal Health (2011-2013). He is a member of the Story County Pork Producers and serves on the board of directors of the Iowa Pork Producers Association. He is the immediate past president of the National Pork Producers Council.

When asked to comment about receiving the award, Hill responded, “I am very honored and humbled to receive this award from the AASV. We all belong to several organizations but I have always felt like the AASV has been my “home organization”. There is no other professional organization that does more for its members and future (students) members than AASV. It is an organization of members helping members. The strength of the organization has been the leadership of those members who have given freely of their time and the guidance from an excellent staff. Thank you AASV for this award.”

Dr Hill and his wife, Nancy, reside in Cambridge, IA. They have three children (Allison, Eric and Jared) and ten grandchildren. Their livestock business includes hogs and cattle. Hill and his son also farm 2,600 acres of corn, soybeans and alfalfa.

Swine Practitioner of the Year

Dr Larry Coleman was named 2015 Swine Practitioner of the Year by the American Association of Swine Veterinarians. The award is given to the swine practitioner who has demonstrated an unusual degree of proficiency and effectiveness in the delivery of veterinary service to clients.

Dr Coleman obtained his Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from the University of Missouri Veterinary College in 1980. Following graduation, he accepted a position at a mixed food animal practice in Broken Bow, NE. In 1986, Dr Coleman left Broken Bow to spend a year at the North Carolina State University working with swine integrators in that state. He returned to Broken Bow in 1987 and opened his own food animal practice; where he remains to this day, having been joined by Dr Russ Rice and Dr Clayton Smith. Dr Coleman’s personal veterinary medicine passion is the “art and science” of getting employees to emotionally engage when they are taking care of animals.

Dr Coleman joined AASV in 1984 and has served on various AASV committees since that time.

Asked to comment about receiving this award, Dr Coleman replied, “I am very honoured to have received the Swine Practitioner of the Year Award. My involvement with the AASV and its members has been a great aid in the development of my professional skills as well as establishing many valuable business and personal friendships. ”

Dr Coleman is married to Renea Coleman and they reside in Broken Bow, NE. They have two grown daughters, Kinsi who is a High School teacher in Alma, NE and Kia who is a second year student at Hastings College in Hastings, NE with plans to become a veterinarian.