GRANTSVILLE In the 43-year span of his veterinarian career, Dr. David Rawe of Grantsville has collected a vast accumulation of memories.
Detailed stories of many farm calls and office appointments fill his mind from over the years. Enough stories to fill a book. In fact, its something he has often thought of writing some day.
Even though it is from his love and compassion for animals that these memories were primarily gained, it seems its the friendships made with clients and appreciation for staff, which are foremost on his mind.
Rawe officially retired in June from a career that began in 1976 after graduation from Auburn Universitys College of Veterinary Medicine. He started practicing in Shelbyville, Kentucky, for a brief time, then spent two years in Lewisburg, West Virginia. He moved to Berlin in 1978, practicing at White Oak Vet Clinic with David Welch.
In 1982, David Rawe and his wife Camilla took a step out in faith to start their own practice in Grantsville at Casselman Veterinary Services. This move placed them near many people who were already his clients. The area he serviced encompassed southern Somerset County in Pennsylvania, Garrett County, Allegany County and Preston County in West Virginia.
The two struck a deal when they moved to Grantsville in those early years of their practice. If after two years there werent enough clients to make a go of it, then he would go back to working for another veterinarian.
Clientele grew quickly and after only six months, he was so busy, they had to hire another veterinarian to help with the workload.
Looking back on his career after his retirement, Rawe said, I really miss the cows and other animals, of course. But I miss talking with all the families even more. Most of my farm families, I watched their kids grow up, sharing the families happy times, as well as their sad.
Sometimes it feels a little bit like a bartender, he laughed. While working with their animals, we would talk and they would share things with me that maybe they couldnt tell everybody else.
As for the farmers, they looked forward to talking to him, as well because he always had a story or a good joke to tell, while sharing with him a story or a joke of their own. He was pleasant to work with, had a sense of humor, and always showed up with a smile on his face.
I have to admit, I didnt really like going out on farm calls in the middle of the night, but thats part of the job. Once I got out there and started working with the animal, with no one else around, the farmer and I would always have an enjoyable talk, Rawe said.
He mentioned that doing surgery was always his favorite part of the job, either on large or small animals. Again, showing his delight for conversation, he said, Once I got into the surgery far enough to make sure the animal was doing OK, especially on surgeries that were very common, the client and I could talk and get caught up on things.
Speaking of how the job took him away from his family at times, Rawe said, Sometimes I would take my kids along with me on farm calls. You never know what youre going to get into. I had two of them out with me until 1 a.m. one time. They fell asleep in the truck.
I remember taking my two youngest, Aaron and Emily, with me on a call for a horse with a long cut on its neck. Knowing that a horse can thrash around a lot when working with it, I told them they had to stay back so they wouldnt get hurt. It took some time to get the horse to settle down, and when we were done, I realized the kids were nowhere around. They had gotten scared, ran out to the truck, climbed up the tailgate and were sitting on the roof of the truck, he said, when referring to another late call-out.
Something Rawe enjoys as much as talking with his clients is fishing. Its something he has taken advantage of since his retirement. His staff can tell you that he had a fishing pole in his truck at all times and took the opportunity to go fishing whenever he had the chance, even during his veterinarian years.
Gladys Maust, a long-time employee of CVS, started working for David and Camilla Rawe in the early years.
He quickly learned which farms had good fishing ponds, Maust said. His large animal equipment included a fishing pole to sneak in a few relaxing moments ... I remember having to move his fishing pole every time I needed to get something out of his truck.
Maust often went along to assist on farm calls with Rawe and was familiar with most of the farms, including the ones with fishing ponds. When Rawe was leaving one of those farms on a particular day, he did not return to the office in the expected time, even though he was done for the day. His pager went off. Thinking he had an emergency call coming in, he was amused to see the message asking, How are the fish biting?
We always had great employees, Rawe said. They always did an excellent job, and we appreciated all the work they did for us.
The employees seem to feel the same about him.
He was an excellent veterinarian and boss, becoming a good friend over the years, Maust said. He worked many hours, often being on call 24/7, especially in the earlier years. Veterinary medicine can be a hard profession, but Dr. Rawes sense of humor helped us all through some tough moments. He truly cared, not only for all of his patients, but also their people.
Maust said one of the Amish clients told her that the Amish community appreciated Rawe greatly.
They felt he accepted everyone for who they were and involved himself in their lives on their level, she said.
Another employee since the early years is Karen Lytle.
One of the best things I did in my life was going to work for Dr. Rawe, Lytle said. He not only became my boss, but a great friend even though he enjoyed scaring me every chance he got.
From the very beginning, Dr. Rawe and his employees always put the patients and clients care first, which is why it has continued to grow into the practice it is today, she said.
Rawe said one person who definitely was not appreciated enough for all the work she did over the years was his wife, Camilla.
She is my rock in life, for all that has went on in the practice and now in our retirement. he said. She has done so much more than any wife or partner could ever do to support me. When we first opened the practice in Grantsville, we worked out of our house for the first few years. She would run all the samples, order supplies, take the calls from the customers and make appointments, deal with the salesmen, do the bookkeeping, and so on, and still took care of the house and six children.
Camillas work and presence was known and appreciated by her husband and staff, even after the business began operating out of the current building, which was built specifically for the practice.
In reflection, Rawe said, I was fortunate that I woke up every day and got to go to a job I really enjoyed. Maybe coming home tired every night weighed on me physically as I got older, but I still enjoyed it.
The one thing that was always hard was having to tell a client there was nothing more that could be done to save their animal, or finding out later that the animal had died. Having to euthanize a pet was always a sad decision never one made unless it was necessary. I always felt sad, along with the people, in times like those, wanting to be there for them when they needed some comfort, he said.
The clients always treated me so nice. I cant say the amount of meals that were given to me, stuff left on the truck seat for me, like cookies and other nice things. Everyone was very generous, and many friendships were formed.
In his retirement, there is plenty to do to keep the Rawes busy. While he misses his clients and staff greatly, he is glad his job was not the only interest he and Camilla had in their lives. They spend as much time together as possible now. They take time to visit and enjoy their children and grandchildren. Certain days of the week are earmarked for things such as visiting family, friends, neighbors, past clients and, of course, fishing.
Their love for music and volunteering at St Anns Catholic Church occupies much of their time as well. David Rawe has been involved with vocals and guitar since high school, and both help him in song leadership every Sunday.
Camilla Rawe has served in religious education for more than 50 years. She currently facilitates an adult Bible study class and serves on the Archdiocesan Pastoral Council, as well as the facilities and real estate commission. Both serve on the Mission Team for their local parish and visit the nursing home on Tuesdays.
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Grantsville veterinarian's remembrances of tales, tails and clientele - WV News