Brainstorm ways to honor outgoing vet clinic owners

March 8, 2013 8:27 AM

My wife just took over ownership of the vet clinic on our small, tight-knit Island community in the Pacific Northwest. She wants to find some permanent, memorable way to honor the previous owners, who ran the clinic for 30+ years. Help us think beyond a plaque.

The two previous owners, a man and a woman who are not a couple, are well-regarded in our town. They built the clinic up from very little when they were young. (They'll keep working as vets, they just won't be owners.) My wife doesn't want to just take over the clinic without celebrating these two.

No, you don't know them, so I'm asking you to brainstorm at a very general level. We're an island of about 10,000 residents, with a small town center. We're a strongly animal- and arts-oriented community.

It might help to know why two obvious ideas don't seem to work: A plaque seems on the dull side, and where does it go? And a nice donation to a worthy fund is great but not visible. All other ideas welcome, and thanks.

posted by argybarg to grab bag (21 answers total)

What about setting up some sort of “scholarship” fund in their names? Like, people could donate so that pets with owners who were less well off could get free vet care?
posted by roomthreeseventeen at 8:30 AM on March 8 [26 favorites]

A bench (with a plaque on, natch) somewhere with a nice view where people go hiking/walk the dog?
posted by EndsOfInvention at 8:31 AM on March 8 [3 favorites]

Name the place after them (if it isn't already the Smith-Jones Veterinary Clinic).

Commission a sculpture or mural for the front of the building or somewhere else visible.

Put dog-level drinking fountains in the town square or its equivalent, with their names prominently attached.

Endow a scholarship at the local high school.

Start a lecture series (and let them give the inaugural lecture/lectures and put them on the governing board) about animal welfare or veterinary topics.
posted by Etrigan at 8:32 AM on March 8 [2 favorites]

Rename the clinic in their honor? i.e. The Small Town [Dr. A and Dr. B] Vet Clinic

A named fund to provide free or reduced-cost care to low-income pet owners and strays?
(on preview, seconding roomthreeseventeen)
posted by trivia genius at 8:33 AM on March 8 [1 favorite]

I would definitely say a fund for free or reduced-cost care, along with perhaps a dog-friendly public space-- I love seeing old dog/person/horse drinking fountains, and if you could swing something like that, it would fit both the arts and the animal side.
posted by jetlagaddict at 8:37 AM on March 8

Could you plant a tree outside the clinic with a plaque? A bench sounds lovely, too.
posted by mamabear at 8:37 AM on March 8 [1 favorite]

Ask past and current clients to send in a photo and story of their pets and how they were cared for by the prior owners. Surely they will have memories of their animal clients. (Right??) Create an album or web page or both. This is assuming you are retaining/purchasing their list.
posted by loveyallaround at 8:44 AM on March 8 [4 favorites]

In my fervor, I sprained my finger favoriting roomthreeseventeen's comment. Don't let this tragedy go unavenged; take up her suggestion.
posted by Terminal Verbosity at 8:47 AM on March 8 [2 favorites]

STRONGLY agree with roomthreeseventeen... establish the "Dr. One & Dr. Two Legacy Fund", hold events/fundraisers for it, etc.
posted by julthumbscrew at 8:49 AM on March 8 [1 favorite]

Don't just start a fund, be a grant-maker. Hold one or two community events a year to celebrate the achievement of grant-winners. Set aside sales proceeds from 1 or 2 certain weeks of the year (advertised well in advance) to the fund.
posted by parmanparman at 8:57 AM on March 8 [1 favorite]

I memailed you! I know someone who might be able to help!
posted by liketitanic at 9:02 AM on March 8

The fund is a great idea.
If you want an alternative to a plaque that is more useful but still says their names, you can have get a special "Dr X and Dr Y" treats bowl with snacks for pets who come in (or for humans who might need a lollipop to get through the appt).
posted by rmless at 9:06 AM on March 8

(This is the wife in question responding) We already have a scholarship set up with the high school and contribute a great deal, both in services and $, to our local humane society. Although re-naming the clinic is an interesting idea, they both have last names that are unwieldy and frequently misspelled, and I really like the current clinic name, which is very appropriate and is the one they picked out when they started the clinic.

A sculpture could work. We have a bench already, although it has been broken once by goats.

Please keep the ideas coming. It would be an easy thing to make our human treat bowl a little fancier and add their names.
posted by argybarg at 9:21 AM on March 8

Is there a dog park in town? Get it named for them. If there isn't a dog park, get one created and name it for them. This has the hidden benefit/ulterior motive of advertising the clinic where the future customers are.

Supporting the humane society financially is great.

Two other ways to support your local H.S.:

Start a free/low-cost spay/neuter program (in the names of these vets) to prevent future puppies and kittens from ending up at the H.S.

Like suggested above, start a fund (in the names of these vets) to help people who can't pay their vet bills. This helps the H.S. by preventing (or delaying) these animals from being surrendered.
posted by SuperSquirrel at 9:32 AM on March 8

Maybe naming some of the exam rooms in their honor?
posted by Leezie at 10:05 AM on March 8 [1 favorite]

Maybe hold a monthly pet food pantry in their name? It defrays costs for people who are going through hard times and helps prevent owner surrenders to animal shelters.
posted by workerant at 10:05 AM on March 8

i love the idea of having a dog park named for them.

i know that you think plaques are boring and dull, but i live in DC, a city that is absolutely full of them, and i always like reading them. the thing is, 100 years down the line, even if just 1 person reads the plaque as they're walking their dog, that's still 1 person who now knows that this couple devoted 30 years of their lives to the service and care of animals. even if it's not ever going to be a jeopardy answer, or have any practical use in their life, they'll still know. i think that'a amazing.
posted by kerning at 10:32 AM on March 8 [2 favorites]

You say the community is "arts-oriented." Are there perhaps local artists/artisans/craftspersons/etc.—maybe that your honourees already know and whose work they admire?—whom you could contact to see about commissioning some kind of lasting tribute?

A mural or a mosaic or a sculpture or whatever would all be fine, but maybe there's a furniture maker or an interior designer/architect who could do some kind of interesting, pet-oriented overhaul of the reception area? If the clinic has any land attached, have a local gardener/landscape architect design an out-of-doors waiting area for dogs or whatever? Maybe those are stupid/inapplicable examples, but draw on your community, and see what they come up with.

These people are still working there, so they might not appreciate having to walk past, like, a giant mural of their faces, and plaques and benches and stuff are a bit, ehrm, "memorial" in nature. I would think doing something that enriches the working/caring environment of the clinic itself, maybe with a little plaque to let everyone know in whose honour it was done, would be the best kind of tribute. (Assuming that the low-income/emergency care fund suggested already doesn't meet a need in the community or doesn't seem ideal/suitable for some reason).
posted by wreckingball at 10:41 AM on March 8 [1 favorite]

I don't know how much you are looking to spend, but maybe you could have some sort of dinner or luncheon? Even a nice Sunday afternoon picnic with plates of finger sandwiches and lemonade would be classy. If you held it in a park guests could even bring their dogs. Then, while at the event, have someone take their picture and you can later frame it with a small paragraph explaining their legacy, which you can hang at the clinic. You can also get a really nice frame, with a place for the photo and paragraph and a small plaque at the bottom, and even present it at the picnic and read the paragraph out loud. Just make sure to say how excited you are to be working together and that you just wanted to honor them often so it doesn't come off as a premature retirement party. It would be a way to acknowledge them, symbolically show a sort of passing of the torch, and like kerning, I think plaques/photos are nice in businesses. I always read them.
posted by theuninvitedguest at 11:06 AM on March 8 [1 favorite]

A tile installation? An example here. The linked installation was done by sixth grade students. Maybe you could commission a local school to complete this project to honor the founding vets? (Of course, replace the sea life for animals you care for daily)
posted by JacksonandFinch at 12:24 PM on March 8

Have you been to Anacortes? They have little painted murals about town depicting historical figures.

You could do something like that on the side of your building! I think it is a cute project. If you are close to Anacortes, you could even get the same artist to do one for you.
posted by dottiechang at 12:36 PM on March 8 [1 favorite]