In its final talk of the current session, Cumbrae Historical Society welcomed vet Melissa Donald to its meeting on 24 April to give a biographical talk entitled “From Herriot to happiness via the North Ayrshire coast”. A move to Staffordshire with a dairy farm next door to her boarding school gave her the opportunity to cement that interest, even after helping with a cow's smelly cleaning after calving. A very competitive, restless youngster she eventually was accepted into Glasgow University's vet school, widely regarded as the best in the country. Her road to practice in Largs with the memorable Gilbert Kennedy was via a short spell at Iowa State University in the USA; one of the first vet schools in America, and initially settling in Crianlarich after her return. She said she was anxious that it was April 2nd 1990, not the previous day, that she started working with Gilbert, a man who was so good to her while she had toddlers, taking on the burden of night-time call-outs. Her son was the first boy to be born into Blairpark Farm for 150 years. Juggling her professional life with an ever expanding practice with domestic responsibilities for two children, sheep, cows, collies, cats ducks and hens at home eventually proved too much of a burden and she experienced a burnout so it was something of a relief to her that the Oaks practice functioning on several sites was taken over by a corporate buyout in 2014. Melissa was at pains to get people to understand the stresses involved with being a vet, a profession with a very high suicide rate (given the wherewithal to do it) and noted that VetLife was now established to support the veterinary community. Having sold out of the practice she took 6 months off to regroup, even contemplating writing children's books, but she decided rather to get involved with her professional bodies being elected to the Council of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons and she is soon to become the Scottish President of the British Veterinary Association. As the Royal Princes have so eloquently revealed in recent days we need to be more aware of mental health issues in the population generally; being a successful professional does not imply immunity from depression. Melissa said she always feels depressed in February, something which many readers will agree with.
At the AGM following this meeting, after 11 years at the helm, Professor Geoff Moore handed over the Presidency to Alastair Chisholm. A new programme of talks will begin in October.