Dr. Larry R. Corry Becomes 2008 AVMA President-Elect

NEW ORLEANS, La. — Dr. Larry R. Corry became the 2008 president-elect of the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) during the AVMA's 145th annual convention in New Orleans this month, beginning a year-long run up to the 2009-2010 presidency of the association.

Dr. Corry, of Buford, Ga., pledged, as the 2008 AVMA president-elect, that he would focus on two goals: to help veterinary schools prepare the next generation of veterinarians and also to improve the AVMA's voice in state and federal legislation by increasing state and federal advocacy efforts and fundraising.

"I will be asking AVMA members to work closely with and support the efforts of the association's Governmental Relations Division in Washington, DC with contributions to our political action committee. We should communicate with our legislators through a strong grassroots network and with visits to their offices on Capitol Hill as well as to their local offices," Dr. Corry says. "I also believe that the association should work closely with veterinary colleges to assist them in accomplishing their goal of expanding curricula to adapt to changing societal demands in veterinary medicine."

Dr. Corry adds that he'll be working to advance the AVMA's strategic goals, which focus on advocacy, workforce shortages, education, animal welfare, and economic viability of the industry.

Dr. Jim McClearen, president of the Georgia Veterinary Medical Association, says that Dr. Corry's organizational abilities, fundraising abilities and dedication to the profession will serve the AVMA membership well.

"In all the years I have known them, Dr. Corry, his wife, and his whole family have been dedicated to veterinary medicine. This includes his work at his clinic, with the state veterinary medical association, and now his work at the AVMA is the ultimate extension of his community-minded spirit," Dr. McClearen says. "I don't think the AVMA could be better served. He has always been willing to talk to anybody to get the job done, and I think that's why people like him so much."

Dr. Corry received his Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from the University of Georgia College of Veterinary Medicine in 1966, and was president of the Georgia Veterinary Medical Association in 1981. Dr. Corry served as chair on the AVMA Executive Board in 2007-2008. He has owned five veterinary hospitals over the course of his career and currently owns two veterinary hospitals.

Dr. Corry and his wife, Carleen Kirby Corry, have four children—Sandy, Tara, Randall and Geoffrey— and five grandchildren—Rachel, Anna, Lily, Savannah and Bodie. For more information, please visit www.avma.org.

Source: www.avma.org