Skip to main content

Reception in New David and Bonnie Brunner Small Animal Hospital Celebrates Hospital Staff

Reception attendees smile as they pause for a photo during the reception
Bedecked with balloons and other décor, the Joanne Troutner Reception Area of the David and Bonnie Brunner Small Animal Hospital was the site of a special event honoring staff and faculty for their efforts to get the new facilities ready to open. Pictured left-right: Lee Ann Happ, Megan Brashear, Amy Huffman, and Donna Tudor with Dr. Ellen Lowery, hospital director, and Dr. Mark Rochat, small animal surgery section head.
Dr. Lowery stands in front of the decorated reception desk as she speaks to the event attendees
Dr. Ellen Lowery commended all of the hospital staff and clinicians who worked tirelessly to help bring the dream of the new David and Bonnie Brunner Purdue Veterinary Medical Hospital Complex to fruition.

After years of planning, with multiple challenges along the way, the completion of the new David and Bonnie Brunner Purdue Veterinary Medical Hospital Complex was marked by a celebratory reception hosted by the College of Veterinary Medicine administration to congratulate the hospital staff on their perseverance. On Friday, May 13, just a few days before the new hospital facilities opened to start caring for patients, hospital staff members were invited to gather for the event in the Small Animal Hospital’s Joanne Troutner Reception Area. The reception was designed to show the administration’s appreciation for their tireless efforts and “take-charge” attitudes that were so instrumental in meeting the challenges involved in getting the beautiful, brand-new facilities ready to open.

Dr. Lowery expressed her thanks at the event, saying, “Challenges are opportunities waiting to be solved – I have seen that firsthand day-to-day in all the work that you all do.” The over 100 hospital staff who turned out for the reception enjoyed refreshments, camaraderie, and an opportunity to take self-guided tours of the new facilities.

Dean Reed also took a few minutes during the reception to express his thoughts, recalling the many iterations of the complex put forward during the planning process, and all the effort involved in finalizing plans and constructing the new facilities. “As excited as I am about these hospitals, I am more excited about the people who are going to occupy them and bring them to life,” Dean Reed told the faculty and staff members in attendance. “Thank you for your many, many contributions.”

Writer(s): Kelly Dold | pvmnews@purdue.edu

Recent Stories

Annual Purdue Veterinary Conference draws veterinary professionals from across the country for learning and fun

The 2026 edition of the annual Purdue Veterinary Conference attracted attendees from around the U.S. for three days of educational sessions covering an array of topics.  With the overall theme of “One Health: Modern Veterinary Medicine,” the conference September 23-26 on the Purdue University campus drew more than 450 veterinarians and veterinary technicians, plus faculty, staff and students. Sessions taught by a total of 65 speakers, including many Purdue Veterinary Medicine clinicians and veterinary technicians/technologists, enabled conference-goers to earn up to 23 continuing education credit hours.

Significant Gift from Jordan Smelski Foundation will fuel Purdue Veterinary Medicine research on deadly brain eating amoeba

A researcher in the Purdue University College of Veterinary Medicine’s Department of Comparative Pathobiology has received a generous gift of more than $100,000 from the Jordan Smelski Foundation for Amoeba Awareness and Mr. Steve Smelski to support research of the deadly amoeba Naegleria fowleri. Christopher Rice, PhD, assistant professor of parasitology and principal investigator of the Rice Research Group, leads a research team seeking to discover and repurpose drugs against primary amoebic meningoencephalitis (PAM), a rare but typically fatal infection caused by Naegleria fowleri.

Purdue veterinary student receives Sir John D. Spurling Scholarship awarded by AKC Humane Fund

The AKC® Humane Fund, Inc.℠ has announced the 2026 recipients of the Sir John D. Spurling Scholarship, celebrating the human-canine bond, and one of the recipients is Purdue veterinary student Tiffany Chang of the Class of 2027. Chang is one of only five students chosen for the scholarships.

Purdue Veterinary Medicine Unites with Purdue United Way Campaign

With the goal of raising $700,000 by November 4 to support local nonprofit organizations that help individuals and families in Greater Lafayette, the Purdue United Way campaign took off September 23 with an official campaign launch on the front lawn of the Purdue Memorial Union. Purdue Veterinary Medicine, along with the university’s other colleges and units, will participate with the help of PVM faculty and staff ambassadors working to make it easy for people in the college to respond, whether by giving, or by indicating that they do not wish to give. As part of the PVM drive to support the campaign, Dean Bret Marsh and his wife, Polly, are contributing a match for campaign contributions from college faculty and staff. Additionally, a drawing will be held to select winners from those who contribute.

“Paws Up” – for Dr. Yasumasa Iimori – brought to you by the PVM Wellness Committee

This week we commend Yasumasa Iimori, DVM, PhD, who is a resident in Emergency and Critical Care in the Purdue University Veterinary Hospital.