The American Association of Swine Veterinarians Foundation is pleased to announce the creation of the Alex Hogg Memorial Fund, established by a bequest of $50,000 from Dr. Hogg’s estate in combination with numerous additional memorial contributions. The fund serves to recognize and remember Dr. Hogg’s contributions to the swine industry, while continuing his commitment to increasing the knowledge of swine veterinarians.
Dr. Hogg’s veterinary career spanned five decades following his graduation from Kansas State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine. After 20 years in private practice, he resumed his formal education at Iowa State University and obtained a Master of Science degree in veterinary pathology. Dr. Hogg served as mentor and advisor to many in his role as swine extension veterinarian and professor at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. He was an internationally recognized expert in swine disease, with over 300 publications and presentations to his credit. Following his retirement from the university, he worked as a technical services consultant for MVP Laboratories and continued his enthusiasm for learning, demonstrated by his completion of the University of Illinois’ Executive Veterinary Program at the age of 75.
Throughout his career, Dr. Hogg actively supported and participated in what was originally the American Association of Swine Practitioners (AASP). He served as secretary-treasurer of the association from 1974 until 1976, during which time the organization experienced tremendous growth. He turned the reins over to the AASP’s first paid executive secretary, Dr. Fred Wertman, in 1976, but continued as a member of the AASP Board and served as president of the association in 1979. The association presented Dr. Hogg with the Howard Dunne Memorial Award in 1985 and the Meritorious Service Award in 1996. In 2005, the AASV Foundation awarded Dr. Hogg the first-ever Heritage Award to recognize his lifetime of outstanding achievements in swine veterinary medicine.
Dr. Hogg’s widow, Mary Lou Chapek Hogg, worked with the AASV Foundation to establish the memorial fund and direct utilization of the fund proceeds. A portion of the fund’s income has been designated to support the newly-established Alex Hogg Memorial Lecture, to be presented each year at the AASV Annual Meeting. Additional fund proceeds will be used to maintain the principal of the original endowment, and to support a scholarship program for practitioners seeking to expand their horizons by pursuing an advanced degree.
The association will recognize the creation of the memorial fund during the 2007 annual meeting in Orlando, Florida. Dr. Steven C. Henry of Solomon, Kansas is slated to present the inaugural Alex Hogg Memorial Lecture during the meeting’s general session. A private practitioner and past president of the association, Dr. Henry credits Dr. Hogg with encouraging him to participate in the AASV at an early stage in his career. He remembers Dr. Hogg as "an absolute warehouse of knowledge and experience" and remarks that "Alex was perhaps the most inquisitive and curious colleague I ever have known – there was nothing in the pig world he was not interested in." During the lecture, Dr. Henry will address the topic "Swine medicine: What we must do to have a seat on this bus." He says his goal is to ground his assessment of the present in the lessons from Alex in the past.
Based in Perry, Iowa, the American Association of Swine Veterinarians Foundation is a charitable, nonprofit organization committed to empowering swine veterinarians to achieve a higher level of personal and professional effectiveness.