April 2009              return to newsletter contents page

AVDA Announces Lifetime Achievement Awards

The AVDA board of directors is pleased to announce that the 2009 recipients of the AVDA Lifetime Achievement Awards will be Fintan Molloy of Teva Animal Health Inc. and John A. Webster, Jr. of Webster Veterinary Supply Co. The award winners will be recognized during the AVDA Annual Awards Banquet on Tuesday, April 21 at the AVDA Annual Conference being held in St. Petersburg, Florida.

Fintan M. Molloy, an industry veteran of over 30 years, is retiring as the President and Chief Executive Officer of Teva Animal Health (formerly IVX Animal Health, Inc.). Mr. Molloy was previously President and CEO of Cooper Animal Health, Inc., (jointly owned by Wellcome and ICI), and President and Chief Operating Officer of Boehringer-Ingelheim Vetmedica, Inc., (BIVI) USA. He also served as Chairman of the Animal Health Institute and was awarded the Majon Huff Award for Lifetime Achievement for Outstanding Services to the Animal Health Industry. Molloy and the companies he has lead, have chosen distribution as their main market strategy. Remaining loyal to distribution during good times and bad, Molloy has set an important standard for the industry.

Molloy has actively supported industry trade associations including the aforementioned AHI, ADVA, the National Pork Producers Association, the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association and the Generic Pharmaceutical trade association.

John Webster, Jr., has been an active entrepreneur in veterinary-supply and industry-related companies and organizations. He served as the President of J.A. Webster from 1978 until 2001 and now serves as a consultant to the newly formed Webster Veterinary Supply Co.

After a brief stint in the insurance business, Mr. Webster joined his father's company, J.A. Webster, in 1958 as a sales representative. The company was a distributor of veterinary products in New England. For the next ten years, he sold the company's products to veterinarians throughout the New England region. In 1968, he became Vice President of Sales and held that position until he was appointed President in 1978. During the next 10 years, he grew the company from a New England regional company to a flourishing company in the Eastern United States with offices in Alabama Massachusetts, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Texas. Mr. Webster was joined by his three sons in business during the 1980's and 1990's, during which time the company continued to grow, reaching over $100 million in annual sales. In 2001, J.A. Webster was purchased by Patterson Dental Supply, a leading distributor in the dental industry.

The AVDA board established the Lifetime Achievement Awards in 2008. This is the second year the Lifetime Achievement Awards have been awarded. The 2008 awardees were Dr. Robert Danielson formerly of MWI Veterinary Supply and Tom Corcoran formerly of Ft. Dodge Animal Health.