Anna Worth, VMD, died May 16 following a long battle with pancreatic cancer, the American Animal Hospital Association reported. She was 55. “It is with heavy hearts and deep sadness that we say goodbye to such a compassionate and talented individual,” said John Albers, DVM, AAHA executive director. “AAHA will forever be indebted to Anna’s unwavering devotion and leadership to the association and our profession.” Dr. Worth served as AAHA president in 2008-2009 and on its board of directors since 2002. She also served on the veterinarian student work group, mentoring guidelines work group and referral task force , and was instrumental in the creation of the AAHA Helping Pets Fund. She and husband Bob Bergman, VMD, married during veterinary school. After graduating from the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine in 1978, they moved to Shaftsbury, Vt., to own and operate West Mountain Animal Hospital. Worth was also a past president of the Society for Veterinary Medical Ethics and Vermont Veterinary Medical Association and a past chair of the Vermont Animal Cruelty Task Force, the Vermont Animal Welfare Committee and the Euthanasia Board for Animals. She also served as the Vermont delegate to the American Veterinary Medical Association. In 1992, the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals named her its veterinarian of the year. She is survived by her husband; son Bo Bergman, DVM, a recent graduate of North Carolina State, and his wife, Megan, and newborn daughter Anna Frasier; and daughter Sarah Bergman, who works for the Center for Biological Diversity in Tucson, Ariz . A celebration of her life will be held May 31 at 10 a.m. at Greenwall Auditorium, Bennington College, Bennington, Vt . Burial will be held at a later date in Romansville, Pa., at the family gravesite. In lieu of flowers, contributions in memory of Worth may be made to the AAHA Helping Pets fund online or to the Southwestern Vermont Regional Cancer Center by check made out to “Southwestern Vermont Cancer Resource Fund” through the office of the Mahar and Son Funeral Home at 628 Main St., Bennington, Vt 05201. <HOME>
