COLLEGE STATION, Texas – The Texas A&M College of Veterinary
Medicine & Biomedical Sciences (CVM) honored six of its alumni
at a dinner held on April 10, 2015 at the Miramont Country Club.
The recipients of the 2015 Rising Star Award and the 2015
Outstanding Alumni Awards are all leaders in the veterinary
profession, and the awards recognize them for their contributions
and service.
“Recognizing our former students and the impact of their
contributions on our college, our state, our nation, and the world
is an honor and privilege,” said Dr. Eleanor M. Green, the Carl B.
King Dean of Veterinary Medicine. “These incredible veterinarians
are outstanding ambassadors for the CVM and our profession. We are
proud of their ongoing commitments to serve, lead, and
educate.”
Rising Star Award Recipient
Dr. Nancy Turner, of Dallas, Texas,
graduated with her B.S. in 2002 and her DVM in 2007 from Texas
A&M University. She has already accomplished a great deal in
the veterinary profession during her relatively short career.
During professional school, Turner served as the student
representative to the Texas Veterinary Medical Association (TVMA)
board of directors. Turner has worked for seven years in small
animal medicine and surgery at various practices in Dallas, such as
Love Field Pet Hospital and Bent Tree Animal Hospital. She has also
worked in relief and emergency veterinary practices since 2010.
Turner is still an active member of the TVMA, where she has
served as a committee member on the Governmental Relations
Committee, Animal Welfare Committee, and Student/Recent Graduate
Committee. In 2009, she became the Dallas County district director.
She also previously served on the Council on Veterinary Service for
the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA). Turner was
awarded both the Recent Graduate of the Year in 2011 and the
President’s Award in 2013 from the TVMA.
She is also an author. Her article “German Shorthairs: How to Be
Your Dog’s Best Friend” was published as part of 101 Publishing:
Pet Series for Demand Media.
Outstanding Alumni Award Recipients
Floron C. "Buddy" Faries Jr. graduated from
Texas A&M with a B.S. in veterinary science in 1964, and earned
his DVM from Texas A&M in 1965. He obtained his certificate in
acarology from The Ohio State University in 1967, and an M.S. in
veterinary parasitology from Oklahoma State University in 1968.
Faries has spent 50 years as a practicing veterinarian and
educator. With a special focus in beef cattle production and horse
health management, public health, and foreign animal and zoonotic
disease defense, Faries' research, experience, influence, and
contributions have been varied and widespread. From risk assessment
and animal emergency management procedures to controlling parasites
in livestock and preventing the spread of infectious diseases of
economic and public health significance, his expertise and advice
have set a standard in care and management of livestock herds.
Faries has been involved in and received recognition from many
agricultural agencies and associations, including Texas A&M
AgriLife Extension Service, Texas 4-H, Texas and National Future
Farmers of America, the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, and the
Independent Cattlemen's Association. Through his membership and
association with these varied groups, he has been influential in
promoting food safety through preventing drug and pesticide residue
in livestock production.
Dr. James L. Forgason earned
his DVM with honors from Texas A&M University in 1957, serving
as the president of the Student Chapter of the American Veterinary
Medical Association during his fourth year. He holds membership in
both the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) and Texas
Veterinary Medical Association (TVMA). After his graduation from
the CVM, Forgason served as staff veterinarian at Winrock Farm,
Governor Winthrop Rockefeller’s Santa Gertrudis cattle farm in
Arkansas.
In 1963, Forgason was called home to manage the family division
of J.D. Hudgins, Inc., founded by his great-grandfather, J.D.
Hudgins, in 1908. Having returned to Texas, Forgason joined Dr.
R.O. Berry at the Wortham Research Laboratory to study reproduction
in Santa Gertrudis, a breed developed by the King Ranch beginning
in 1929 by crossing 500 Hudgins Brahman bulls with Shorthorn
cows.
Along with Berry, Forgason helped persuade the Texas Legislature
to establish the Texas Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory.
Forgason served as secretary of J.D. Hudgins, Inc. for 23 years and
president for 19 years, promoting the sale of Hudgins Brahman
cattle and sharing his knowledge of cattle fertility and health
around the world.
Dr. Charles R. Pipes entered Texas A&M
in 1972 as a proud member of the Corps of Cadets and a
pre-veterinary student and earned his DVM in 1978. After working
for South Oak Cliff Animal Hospital in Dallas, Charlie and his
wife, Carolyn, along with Charlie’s parents, opened Country Brook
Animal Hospital in Garland, Texas, in 1987.
Since 1978, Pipes has been a continuous member of
the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA), the Texas
Veterinary Medical Association (TVMA), and the Dallas County
Veterinary Medical Association. Pipes has Lifetime Members status
with the TVMA. He is a 29-year diplomate, American Board of
Veterinary Practitioners. Having served on several TVMA committees
during the last 33 years, his favorite committee has been the
Historical Committee and its dedicated efforts towards the Mark
Francis Museum of Veterinary History and the Texas Veterinary
Heritage Practice Program.
Pipes was nominated twice for TVMA’s Companion
Animal Practitioner Award. He received the TVMA President’s Award
in 2009, the TVMA Distinguished Career Achievement Award in 2014,
and he is a Mark Francis Fellow.
In addition to being consistent financial
supporters of TVMA and the A&M Foundation, Pipes and his wife
established the Carolyn and Dr. Charles Pipes ’78 Endowment in
Veterinary Medicine in 2013. They are also committed to the Small
Animal Hospital Construction Fund.
Dr. Sharon J. Spier graduated from Texas
A&M University with a B.S. in 1981 and a DVM in 1983, after
which she attended a large animal residency at the University of
California, Davis (UC Davis), where she earned her certification
from the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine and
completed her Ph.D. in comparative pathology in 1989. Spier was
hired afterwards as a faculty member, eventually attaining the rank
of professor in UC Davis’s Department of Medicine and
Epidemiology.
Spier's special focus on equine medicine has led to a variety of
leadership roles as a researcher, teacher, and clinician. She was
appointed as an Emergency Treating Veterinarian for 5 Olympic games
(1988-2008) and multiple World Equestrian Games and is active in a
number of equine groups. Her extensive research, knowledge, and
experience have led to worldwide speaking engagements and ongoing
contributions to many research publications.
One of Spier's most important contributions to the field of
equine medicine was her role in the research of hyperkalemic
periodic paralysis (HYPP) in Quarter Horses, and her subsequent
role in the development of a genetic test for identifying horses
that carry this potentially fatal gene mutation. Her collaborations
and unique combination of focus, training, and experience as a
veterinary internal medicine specialist enabled her to shed new
light on the diagnosis, manifestation, progression, and management
of this devastating disease. She was awarded the American
Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) Excellence in Equine Research
Award for her contribution in this area..
Dr. James Edward (Jim) Ward Jr. graduated
with his DVM from Texas A&M University in 1965. After
graduation, he joined Dr. Buddy Smith at Bayshore Animal Hospital
in Pasadena, Texas. In 1975, Ward and his brother, Mike, opened
Ward Animal Hospital, in Nacogdoches, Texas, with Jim concentrating
on equine reproduction. He practiced there until 1993 and now
serves as a consultant. Ward also serves as a consultant and in a
management role at Center Ranch and Center Veterinary &
Reproductive Services in Centerville, Texas. In addition, Ward has
owned and managed two commercial horse farms: Rio Medina Ranch in
San Antonio and Pineywoods Stallion Station in Nacogdoches.
Since 2000, Ward has been the Equine Management Consultant for
Cargill, Inc., and a member of the national product development
team and the Cargill Equine Enterprise Team. Through his career and
his studies at Rio Medina Ranch and other ranches, Ward observed
the devastation of colic on horses. This led him to develop
the premium horse feed, SafeChoiceTM, which earned him
the Innovation Award from Cargill’s Southwest District in 2004.
Ward served as a director of the Texas Thoroughbred Association
from 1998 through 2006, was Member of the Year in 2000 and
president in 2001-2002. He served as a board member for The
Breeders’ Cup Limited in 2001-2002. He is a member of the American
Veterinary Medical Association, the American Association of Equine
Practitioners, the Texas Veterinary Medical Association, and the
Texas Equine Veterinary Association.
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Contact
Information
Megan Palsa, mpalsa@cvm.tamu.edu, 979-862-4216, 979-421-3121
(cell)
Angela G. Clendenin, aclendenin@cvm.tamu.edu, 979-862-2675,
979-739-5718 (cell)