TWO members of staff are individually celebrating two decades of service with a veterinary practice.
Orchard House Vets, which has practices in Hexham, Stocksfield and Bellingham, is marking anniversaries for two staff members at its Hexham practice, which marked its 25th anniversary last year.
Claire Finnigan, the practice's assistant manager, and Jill Crawford MRCVS, a veterinary surgeon, are both marking 20 years of working at the branch.
Claire started working at Orchard House Vets as a client care manager in 2004, before moving on to become the practice manager.
She said: "I love the job, the clients and the ethos of the practice. The practice has grown over the years and I've grown with it. I took a step back after Covid to spend a bit more time with my son, so I went from being the practice manager to the assistant manager. I love my job," she added.
"There is scope for growth within veterinary to find a job that you love and stay in it for a long time. I couldn't imagine doing anything else now and that's a testament to the fact I love what I do, the animals and the people I work with."
Claire's job includes managing the practice and caring for pets and clients on a day-to-day basis.
"My aim every day is to come in and give the best I can so clients and their pets are given the best treatment," she added.
A spokesperson from Orchard House Vets said: "In 2023, we celebrated being a part of the Hexham and local community for the last 25 years. Of those 25 years, we also celebrated 20 years of service from our wonderful veterinary surgeon, Jill Crawford MRCVS.
"Not many businesses can boast such service and dedication, and we have been blessed that just a month later we can celebrate 20 years of service from our assistant practice manager, Claire Finnigan. We are a family-run, independent veterinary practice and Tim Pearson's vision from day one was to care for your pets as if they were our pets, to maintain that family-run feel whilst offering the very best care.
"Our staff are like family, and to have two members of staff celebrating 20 years of hard work and dedication is a wonderful feeling. We have five other staff approaching 10, 15 and 20 years of service over the next few years, so we will need to keep the candles handy!"
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