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Dr. Vernard Hodges and Dr. Terrence Ferguson to Serve as FVSU Homecoming Parade Grand Marshals
Posted on Oct 20, 2023 at 17:01 PM
FVSU alumni Dr. Vernard L. Hodges and Dr. Terrence Ferguson, stars of the hit show “Critter Fixers” on Nat Geo Wild, have been named the 2023 Homecoming Parade Grand Marshals.
Dr. Hodges was born in Norwalk, Connecticut but grew up in Fort Valley, Georgia. He graduated in 1993 from Fort Valley State University as a Fish Biologist and later obtained his medical degree from Tuskegee University School of Veterinary Medicine. He developed his love and passion for all animals and their health growing up on a small farm with countless pets in rural Peach County. As an only child, it was these “pets” that he spent countless hours nurturing and taking care of.
Prior to veterinary school, Dr. Hodges worked for the Agency for International Development in Nepal and India developing an aquaculture program in Phewa Lake. This program was for growing and developing fish as a source of inexpensive protein for village residents. Dr. Hodges also participated in an Aquatic Internship at the University of Mississippi with hopes of becoming a Marine Biologist and the next “Jacques Cousteau.” Nonetheless, his true passion for Veterinary Medicine was fulfilled when he applied and was accepted to Tuskegee University School of Veterinary Medicine and graduated with a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) in 1997. Dr. Hodges is a proud member of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. (initiated into the Upsilon Sigma chapter while at FVSU) and has one son and three dogs. He also raises Koi on a fish farm in Peach County.
Dr. Terrence Ferguson is a native of Talbotton, Georgia. He enrolled at Fort Valley State University in Fort Valley, Georgia in 1987 and later obtained his medical degree from Tuskegee University School of Veterinary Medicine. His love of animals began when he was rescuing several neighborhood stray animals as a child growing up in rural West Georgia.
During his tenure at FVSU, Dr. Ferguson interned with The US Fish and Wildlife Service at two of their wildlife refuges including Patuxent Wildlife Refuge in Laurel, Maryland and Alaska Wildlife Refuge on the Kenai Peninsula. Upon completion of his Bachelor of Science degree in Veterinary Technology, Dr. Ferguson applied to the Tuskegee School of Veterinary Medicine and was accepted. He graduated in 1998 with his Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM).
In his spare time, Dr. Ferguson gives back to his community by volunteering, coaching and mentoring Central Georgia students involved with the Peach County Youth Organization, where he also serves as Treasurer. He also serves as a trustee at Beulahland Bible Church, in Warner Robins and Macon, GA. Dr. Ferguson and his wife Kimberly reside in Byron, Georgia with their two children, Terrence II and Nicole, who is an alumna of FVSU, and their dogs Chloe, Bailee, and Shaq.
The Homecoming Parade will be held on Saturday, October 21, at 9 a.m. in downtown Fort Valley, Georgia.
For more information about the parade and FVSU’s Homecoming 2023 celebration, visit www.fvsu.edu/homecoming2023.
Follow Dr. Hodges and Dr. Ferguson on Instagram @drhodges_critterfixervet and @drferguson_critterfixervet. You can also visit www.Critterfixerveterinaryhospital.com for more information.
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