A Lasting Legacy: How One Woman’s Love for Her Dogs Is Helping Shape the Future of Rural Veterinary Medicine
When Liz Solters talks about her veterinarian, she doesn’t hesitate to say how much they mean to her.
“Other than my friends, my veterinarian is my most important person — he takes care of my children,” Solters said, referring to her beloved rescue dogs.
That deep respect for veterinary professionals inspired Solters to create something extraordinary: the Sydney and Fran Memorial Veterinary Scholarship at the Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine. Named for her two first dogs, Sydney and Fran, the scholarship is a lasting tribute to the animals who changed her life — and a lifeline for future veterinarians like Kelli Gillespie, this year’s recipient.
From Rescue Dogs to Rural Dreams
Solters’ connection with the veterinary college began more than 30 years ago when her dogs were treated at the Veterinary Teaching Hospital. The care they received — and the compassion shown by the veterinary students — left a lasting impression.
“I was so impressed that a student called me every night to tell me how Fran was doing,” Solters recalled. “Because I have no close family, I decided long ago that my estate would go to the vet school at Virginia Tech.”
After retiring from a military career, Solters, who now lives in rural North Carolina, wanted her legacy to help address one of the biggest challenges in veterinary medicine: the shortage of veterinarians in small towns and rural communities.
“We need more vets serving rural areas,” she said. “People who are in a position to help, need to help.”
A Scholar With a Purpose
The scholarship found its perfect match in Kelli Gillespie, a fourth-year veterinary student on the food animal track. Gillespie didn’t grow up on a farm — she’s from suburban Richmond but she discovered her calling in agriculture while studying animal and dairy science as an undergraduate at Virginia Tech.
“I really feel a passion for production medicine,” Gillespie said. “I want to support our agricultural communities because they’re often underserved. This scholarship has allowed me to explore that passion.”
With the help of the Sydney and Fran scholarship, Gillespie has been able to travel for externships she might not have been able to afford otherwise — including working in mixed-animal practice in rural Texas and planning future rotations with livestock veterinarians in Pennsylvania and Ireland.
Her dream? To work in food animal private practice, ideally somewhere that offers both ambulatory farm calls and haul-in facilities, a perfect blend of preventive and emergency medicine for the farmers who feed America.
A Gift That Keeps Giving
For Solters, seeing Gillespie thrive affirms that she made the right choice.
“I thought about buying equipment or funding something else,” Solters said, “but I realized that investing in a student’s future was a much better investment.”
Thanks to her generosity, the Sydney and Fran Memorial Veterinary Scholarship not only honors two beloved dogs but also strengthens the backbone of veterinary medicine, by empowering the next generation of veterinarians to serve where they’re needed most.
Original article here: https://news.vt.edu/articles/2025/10/vetmed-scholarship-highlight.html
