CENTRAL SQUARE, NY – In honor of National Small Business Week, Veterinarian Dr. Ali Hawthorn of Central Square’s Highland Animal Hospital was recognized on Wednesday, April 3; winner of the Small Business Association (SBA) Woman-Owned Business of the Year Award.
SBA Upstate New York District Director Bernard J. Paprocki honored Hawthorn with the award, hosting an SBA event at the Highland Veterinary Hospital’s new facility located at 12 Gertrude Drive in Central Square.
Also attending Wednesday’s event was Oswego County Administrator Phil Church, Oswego County Chairman James Weatherup, TD Bank SBA Lender Jennifer McKay, representatives from both NYS Assembly Minority Leader Will Barclay’s office and U.S.Congresswoman Claudia Tenney’s office; along with Hawthorne’s family and the Highland Animal Hospital staff.
Hawthorne, an Oswego native, left Central New York to pursue her veterinarian career; completing her undergraduate degree from SUNY Delhi and Cornell University. She then completed her clinical year at Texas A&M University and received her DVM from Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine.
After working as a veterinarian in Arizona, Hawthorn moved back to the Central New York area, and took over ownership of Highland Animal Hospital in Central Square in 2019. Realizing a deep need for a larger facility that offered more to the CNY region, Hawthorn pushed forward, applying for a small business loan to fulfill her dream of expansion.
After receiving her award, Hawthorn thanked everyone involved in making not only her dreams of expanded, cutting-edge vet care possible, but thanked her team of dedicated workers who go above and beyond in making sure every animal receives the best care possible.
“Thank you finally to the incomparable Highland Animal Hospital staff. This has not been my journey – it’s been our journey,” Hawthorn said. “You are all a big part of why I’m here today, and I can’t thank you all enough for your passion and dedication to the field of veterinary medicine. It continues to grow day in and day out, and I can’t wait to see what our future holds.”
McKay was first introduced to Highland Animal Hospital and Dr. Hawthorn at TD Bank in 2021 when she first started the process of applying for a small business loan; the two working together to fulfill Hawthorn’s vision for a cutting-edge clinic.
“I have been in banking for over 25 years. I say this because for the last decade I have been doing exclusively SBA loans. And during that time period, this is the first time that I have nominated somebody for an award during small business week. And I just wanted to make that known to Ali because that is how highly that I think of you, and all of TD thinks of you and your project,” McKay said. “Woman owned business of the year; look at her staff – look at her fabulous staff!”
According to Paprocki, Hawthorn quickly saw that her facilities need’s began outweighing the available services offered in their 3000 square foot building; saying Hawthorn received an SBA 7(a) loan from TD Bank in 2022 to construct their new 7,200 ft. facility “which will add state-of-the-art animal urgent care to her impressive list of existing services.”
“Ali has demonstrated an impressive example of how SBA services and our lending partners can not only help a small business grow, but help entrepreneurs like Ali save lives every day. It’s clear that Dr. Hawthorne’s passion for animals extends to her staff and her community and we can’t want to see what she does next,” Paprocki said.
Church also congratulated Hawthorn, expounding on the hard work and dedication put forth in making this day possible from she and her team; saying Highland Animal Hospital is a valuable asset to Oswego County.
“We revere small businesses because their achievements are made by everyday American’s and not corporate boards. We revere small businesses like the Highland Animal Hospital because they’re the center of our communities, they innovate, and they employ I recently learned, over half of the American workforce,” Church said. “I congratulate Dr. Hawthorn.”
On behalf of Oswego County, Weatherup presented Hawthorn with a proclamation declaring April 30 – May 6 as Small Business Week.
“I want to briefly congratulate Dr. Hawthorn and her staff here at Highland for their hard work. It has been wonderful to see this business grow right here in our community to fill a critical need for our resident’s pets,” Weatherup said. “Small businesses like Highland are the foundation of our national and local economy, and the entire community should be proud to have one of our own recognized.”
Commendations were also given out by Barclay and Tenney’s offices. The new Highland Animal Hospital building is still under construction, with a grand opening date still to be announced. For more information on Highland Animal Hospital, please click here.
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