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Ericka Mendez, DVM

What if I told you that there is a skill set that could make you feel like a better spouse, a better parent, and a better doctor? Would you be open to hearing that? Would you be open to living that? What would it take for you to reach out and grab that helping hand to show you the way? I'll tell you what it took for me, and it wasn't pretty…

The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the position of the Unchartedvet.com editorial team.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Dr. Ericka Mendez is a small animal veterinarian and veterinary professional mentor on the east coast of Florida. She loves reading, teaching and writing about veterinary wellness and channels all her loves into her blog, The Purposeful Vet. She shares her life with her husband and daughter and can often be found at the beach, at a Disney park or on the couch watching Harry Potter movies.

We invite you to take a peek into part of what makes the Uncharted Veterinary Community so unique: our members! We're taking the spotlights to the next level and interviewing the Uncharted Team! This week's interviewee needs no introduction. Jamie Holms is the executive assistant to Dr. Andy Roark, paperwork and question answering queen of Uncharted and a fantastic friend! Enjoy!

For anyone who doesn’t know you, could you tell us a little about yourself?

Hello, I’m Jamie.  I’m a Myers Briggs INTJ, DiSC high D high C, and my ACE score is a 9.  If you’ve been through a bad situation, there’s a good likelihood I can relate and while I don’t believe that there is a reason for everything, I do believe that we can give purpose to our experiences.  My sense of humor is dark and a little biting – mostly because if I can make other people laugh I feel in control of the situation and I feel the least amount of control in social situations and it can keep people from getting close. My biggest fear is abandonment.  I eat way too much sugar, I don’t like to exercise but I’m working on doing it anyway, I have a lot of tattoos and a brand, but I don’t drink and I don’t smoke. I’m brutally honest – you can trust that I’m never “just being nice.” And I really don’t see myself the way other people do – but I think that’s true for everyone.  

What tasks do you work on as part of the UVC Team?

You can think of me as the paperwork person -– which is exactly what I love to be doing (I know, not a normal thing, but every team has to have one).  I do a lot of odds and ends, but some of the things you’d recognize are that I work on RACE approval for the conference, getting the conferences and classes up into the school, and making sure all our speakers turn in all their materials for the conferences, webinars and masterclasses. I also help Melanie with picking out swag and merch which I find to be extremely fun. 

What were you looking for when you joined Uncharted?

Let me tell you what I wasn’t looking for.  I wasn’t looking to sell nearly everything I owned and move from California across the country with my husband and two dogs in a 19-foot camper trailer. I wasn’t looking for a full-time job in South Carolina and I wasn’t looking for friends or more extended family. I wasn’t looking for a cat or two cats. I wasn’t looking for any of it, that’s for sure. But sometimes what you need, it finds you and if you ask a lot of Uncharted tribe members, they’ll tell you something similar about how when they showed up they weren’t looking for the things they ended up with, but they needed them. Here I am, in Greenville, South Carolina, in a beautiful home with two additional animals and a tribe. I didn’t know I needed a cup and now it’s full and my capacity for joy has been stretched to boundless.

What is one of your favorite Uncharted conference memories?

This was my ‘light switch” moment. At the most recent conference, we were down a team member, and Trusten Moore, one of our student volunteers was helping me (and doing a great job). We were tired and very busy. We got into the elevator and were talking for multiple minutes and then it got quiet and we both looked at each other for probably the longest 30 seconds of my life. Finally, it dawned on us, neither of us had hit the elevator button and we were just sitting there. We laughed so hard and continued to laugh about it repeatedly over the weekend. Lesson learned, brilliance and charism on its own won’t move an elevator.

What is your favorite hobby and how did you discover it? Would you recommend it to others?

I love to grow things and share, whether it’s seeds, homegrown tea, herbs, fruit, vegetables or plant clippings. I live in a regular neighborhood in Greenville, with a small yard. We’ve managed to pack in a fig, nectarine, Pakistani mulberry, peach, apricot, crabapple, pear, pawpaw, tea camelia, weeping yaupon holly (the only native plant in the North America that is naturally caffeinated), blueberries, chocolate vine, rose (for rose hips), hardy kiwi, and vegetable and herb garden (which isn’t ready yet). I have a special interest in natives, perennials and heirlooms. I’m pretty excited to try growing peanuts this year. I like food – like – a lot – and fresh fruit, vegetables and herbs right off the plant is so full of flavor and worth the effort. Want to trade seeds??

What is one thing you never thought you could do (or were afraid to try) that you’ve done since joining Uncharted? 

As an adult it’s not so easy to make friends – well -– okay – so it wasn’t so easy as a kid either, but that’s the biggest thing that Uncharted has brought into my life is genuine friendships with people from all over the world. OHHH! And Meditation. Never in a million years did I think I could sit quietly with myself.  Not only did I tackle this but I even led a meditation session at one of our conferences!  This was a tremendous benefit to taking part in a meditation intensive led by tribe member Dana Meske a couple of years ago!

What is your end-of-workday guilty pleasure? 

Driving around the block to get in 5 more minutes of the audiobook I’m listening to. It is an extra guilty pleasure when my husband has been in the car for most of the book and I’m listening “ahead.” I also like to tell the dogs what I had for lunch and that I didn’t save any for them… I have a cruel streak.

Where is one place in the world you would love to see? 

I haven’t traveled at all – unless you count my cross country move? That might count a little bit. The Aurora Borealis (or any of the auroras) are on my bucket list and I really want to see Incan or Aztec ruins. My husband and I are planning a Mexico ruins trip in 2021.

What is one thing you believe all veterinary professionals can do right now to make Vet Med even better? 

I have two.  Sometimes I’m a rule breaker.

1. Take personal responsibility and be accountable for our own happiness and mental health.
2. Spend some time in the client role – maybe start by following the recommendations that we make to our clients for our own pets

You can join the Uncharted community and meet people like Jamie by visiting www.UnchartedVet.com and registering to become a member!

Giving your team the gift of gratitude can be as simple as writing a quick “Thank you” on their paycheck envelope. We've compiled 25 simple and fun ideas for you to show your team gratitude thanks to the members of our Uncharted Community!

Our Community is filled with leaders who want to make their practices the best they can be. They are outside-of-the-box thinkers, who have come up with some amazing and creative ways to show their teams' gratitude.

Sign up for our Uncharted mailing list and we will give you this fantastic resource with 25 ideas to show your team how much you care.