I don’t think there are enough words in the English language to describe how much our mentor/mentee relationship has meant to me. Enrolling in the IAVM Mentor Connector program is one of the greatest decisions I have made as a young professional in IAVM. In today’s world, there are many people that will tell you what you want to hear. To me, that is not what a mentor is. A mentor will tell you the truth, even when it isn’t pretty. A mentor will push you to pursue opportunities you didn’t think you could obtain because in reality – no one really knows when they’re ready until they take that step. A mentor will share their advice, ideas, experiences, and allow their mentee to confide in them.
Our relationship has not only allowed me to grow as a professional but as a human being. It was such a wonderful experience to have had a mentor that I could share pieces of my professional and personal life with. From our love of Bob’s Burgers, to our fondness of cute little hedgehog YouTube videos, to our passion for a good reading on women in leadership, and our discussions on what is going on in our industry – I hope our mentor/mentee relationship benefitted you as much as it did me.
Mentor, you are so appreciated and so loved – our industry is extremely lucky to have someone like you. Seeing you on the Women In Leadership panel at the IAVM VenueConnect Conference was so inspiring, I had to hold myself back from whispering to everyone at my table, “that’s my mentor!” I learned so many things from you; I sincerely hope you have also learned a few things from me. Please know that just as you have always been there for me, I will always be there for you. I love listening to you, your ideas, your dreams, and your passions. I hope to continue to follow you in your footsteps and who knows, maybe one day I will be asked to speak as a panelist in the Women in Leadership panel and perhaps you will look to the person sitting next to you and say, “that’s my mentee”.
