Stories

Donn W. Griffith, D.V.M., at ah AHVMA retreat. I believe that this photograph was taken by one of Dad's veterinary colleagues at an AHVMA retreat. The retreats are held each year near the site of the AHVMA conference, just prior to, or just after, the conference. The first one that Donn attended was held in Indiana. Donn attended at least half a dozen of these retreats. He quit attending when one of the retreats had primitive accommodations, which would have been difficult for sleeping and may...

This time of year, I often recall fond memories of opening presents on Christmas morning. Our father was a small business owner, and I'm sure some years the finances were difficult, but we never knew on Christmas. But, we did know that certain things needed to be done before the first gifts could be opened. I'm sure it wasn't ever year, but it seemed to be often that our family took one or two of the kennel cleaning shifts over the holidays. When you have 100 dogs and cats boarding, while...

Growing up in Dublin, Ohio in the 80s and 90s, fast food was not a daily part of our diet, particularly because our mother was, and remains, a fantastic gourmet chef. But, we did grow up on the same street as the international headquarters for Dave Thomas's Wendy's. There was the occasional ice cream cone at McDonald's after a soccer game on Saturday morning, and infrequently we could talk our parents into stopping at one of the fast food restaurants in the neighborhood. Just a stone's throw...

Growing up with a veterinarian as a father, we always had pets in the house, and in the barn. We loved each one as a member of our family. Here is a list of some of the pets we cared for over the years: ChickensPenny the BeagleSebastian the Yellow Fronted Amazon ParrotMittens, the calico kittenEmmy the Golden RetrieverCher the Black LabMegan the German Wired Hair PointerBlue the WeimaranerTigger the calico catSmokey the domestic long haired catBagel the BeaglePeachy the hamsterGuinea pigsRed...

When most of us think of September 2001, we remember the heroes who were first responders saving lives, and many who lost their own lives. For me, the day before 9/11 will forever cement into my memory my father as a hero. A few days before, I set off from Dublin, Ohio, with my good friend, Dustin, in the passenger seat of the 1990 Chevrolet Suburban, dark blue and gold, with golden cloth interior, well loved after more than a decade of transporting me and Brad to and from school and soccer...