Our Team

Dr. Terry Jelsema, a graduate of Calvin College and Michigan State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine, established Jelsema Veterinary Clinic in 1998.  Dr. Jelsema takes pride in creating relationships with our clients and working with them to find a solution that works best for their pets’ care and treatment.  Dr. Jelsema leads the JVC team based on the core values of being a team player and a self starter. His lead by example style of servant leadership has helped create an honest, hardworking, positive team that focuses on patient care with compassion and dedication.

Dr. Jelsema is the proud father of 7 children; Justin (married to Samantha), Jessica, Jacob, Julia, Joslynn, David and Isabella, and 3 grandsons.  The Jelsema household is also home to Eli, the dog.

When Dr. Jelsema is not at home with the family or busy at the clinic, he is an avid fan of Star Wars.  Dr. Jelsema is a member of the 501st Garrison often making appearances in character as a storm trooper, participating in community service events across West Michigan.

Dr. Neher grew up in Vancouver British Columbia, Canada, where she attended the University of British Columbia, majoring in Microbiology/Immunology. She then went on to vet school at Murdoch University in Perth, Western Australia. She graduated with honors in 2008. During her final year at Murdoch she spent 5 weeks at MSU (MSU is a sister school to Murdoch). Dr. Neher loves adventure and Australia was the perfect place go to school for her! She got to live and work and learn there and got to see a lot of neat animals and it was an amazing experience! She worked in various veterinary related jobs during vet school and traveled all over during breaks (Thailand, Bali and over many parts of Australia)! Dr. Neher also had the opportunity to do veterinary volunteer work in the Cook Islands as a new grad vet on her way home (to USA) from vet school.

He favorite part of being a vet at Jelsema Vet Clinic is building client and patient relationships and internal medicine. She love dermatology and managing challenging dermatologic or internal medicine cases. It is very rewarding to make animals feel better whether it be from anxiety, pain or itch!

When Dr. Neher is not at work she enjoys travel, relaxing and going on adventures on her jet boat, skiing when she can, spending time with her husband (who she met while on a cruise) and 3 children, church, Bible study group, board games (she hosts a monthly game night) and working out.

Dr. Molly Wiersema was born and raised in Holland. She then went on to Michigan State for her undergrad. She is also a 2010 graduate of the MSU College of Veterinary Medicine. Prior to joining the staff at JVC, Dr. Wiersema practiced Marine and Zoo animal medicine in Alaska where she was a featured Vet on a television show.

When she is not at work, she enjoys spending time with her husband, two children, and miniature dachshund (Pearl). Pre-covid, Dr. Wiersema enjoyed traveling, but now tends to stay local, enjoying hiking, cooking, boating and gardening.

Dr. Wiersema also has a great love of sharks and was able to fulfill a lifelong dream of cage diving with a great white shark while visiting South Africa.

A 2022 MSU College of Veterinary Medicine graduate, Dr. Jacob Jelsema enjoys serving the Jelsema Vet Clinic family as a general practitioner but has special interests in cardiology and ophthalmology. He enjoys being able to work alongside you and your pet as a team to provide the best standard of care possible.

Erin graduated from Baker College with her degree in Veterinary Technology in 2005 and joined the Jelsema Vet Clinic team in 2007. Originally hired in the role of a licensed technician she advanced from technician, to lead technician and now practice manager. Erin is a wealth of knowledge with a particular interest in practice metrics, and enjoys working with and mentoring the Baker College students that rotate through the clinic. Originally from Hudsonville, she now lives in Kent City with her husband, Steve, and their pets. Erin is very involved in local 4-H programs is also a licensed pygmy goat judge. When she has free time, you can often find her judging goat shows around the country or at a Truck Show with her husband.

Danie was born in Worthington, Minnesota but was raised in Costa Rica. Her family moved to West Michigan when she was a teen and has called this area home ever since. Danie loves the variety of working as a veterinary assistant at JVC both in the kinds of animals we treat and in the different procedures we utilize for our patients. She likes being able to connect with clients and help then navigate the sometimes tricky world of animal care.

While most people would think her favorite part of working in vet med are getting to see puppies and kittens every day, Danie finds the pets that have a little attitude or may be anxious to be her favorite. As a Fear Free Certified Professional her goal is to make each and every visit to the vet a welcoming one.

When Danie is not at JVC, she enjoys spending time with her husband and 4 amazing kids. Scuba diving, camping and horseback riding are all keen interests of her family.

Their family farm is also home to 28 animals including 9 different species and 20 breeds, all rescues! One of those animals is a tortoise that will outlive her. Danie likes to take the tortoise to schools to educate kids about responsible pet ownership.

Erin joined the Jelsema Vet Clinic team in 2018 working as a high school co-op student through the Careerline Tech Center’s Agriscience program. She then continued her studies at Baker College of Muskegon where she obtained her Veterinary Technology degree. Erin has a special interest in emergency medicine and is always challenging herself to learn more and improve to patient care techniques for the practice.
 
In her free time, Erin enjoys spending time at the beach with her friends, participating in competitive sports, dirt biking and jet skiing.

Mina graduated from Baker College of Muskegon in 2016 and joined the JVC team in 2017 as a Licensed Veterinary Technician (LVT).

Her favorite part of being a LVT is utilizing her nursing skills in surgery and assisting the doctors with ultrasound. She also enjoys seeing puppies and kittens grow and develop over time. She truly enjoys being able to teach owners about the different growth and learning stages of their pets.

Mina was recently married and enjoys crafting and baking with her husband. At home, they have 2 pets; Kovu, a German Shepherd Dog, and Mushu, a bearded dragon.

Samantha is a veterinary assistant that has worked in the veterinary field for 8 years prior to joining the JVC Team! She lives in the Zeeland area where she enjoys hunting, four-wheeling, gardening, hiking, camping, traveling, and being outdoors and in the woods. Sam shares her home with her husband and daughter. Together, they have two dogs, Chief and Venari, and two horses, Cash and Liberty. She loves establishing relationships with our great clients and working with the team at JVC to meet your pet’s needs.

Sam is a Fear Free Certified Elite Professional.

Joining the Jelsema Vet Clinic team in 2024 is Maycie. She is a graduate of Baker College’s Veterinary Technician Program. At home Maycie has a crested gecko Yoshi (pictured), a Russian tortoise Hank, a bearded dragon Sweets, 2 boxers Ace and Jynx, a Rottweiler Meekah, and a pug Beau. Her favorite part about being a vet tech is knowing she can come together with her team and make a difference one patient at a time. And as much as she loves working with dogs and cats every day there is a special place in her heart for the more exotic patients and would love to work more with them one day.

When Maycie isn’t working, she enjoy going to the gym, going to the beach, roller blading, reading, and gaming.

Danika graduated from CATCH Canine Trainers Academy in 2021 and has always had a huge passion for dog training and behavior. She is close to finishing her CCDPT-KA for dog training too.  At Jelsema Vet Clinic, she uses her training skills to teach puppy classes.

When not at the clinic, she enjoys anything outside including working out and spending time with friends and family. She has 2 dogs (Roman and Sugar), a cat (Marvin) and a horse (Rose).

Kayla’s passion in life has always been animals and dance. Kayla has two Dalmatians, Ella and Mystic. She joined the JVC Team in 2024 as a Veterinary Assistant. Since she was young it has always been her dream job to work with animals.

During her dance career, Kayla has been in music videos for local artists and competed/performed with multiple professional hip hop dance companies located in Grand Rapids, Chicago and Los Angeles. Continuing her passion for dance, Kayla is a guest choreographer at Zeeland Public Schools and local studios. In 2020, Kayla went to Georgia to be an extra cast member on the CW television show “Legacies”.

Outside of work, Kayla, along side with her parents, started Superstar Designs. She and her parents design new merchandise to sell online as well as at TV show/ movie conventions all over the US. Along with going to conventions Kayla enjoys traveling, crafts, horseback riding and spending time with her fur babies, friends and family.

Shelly joined the Jelsema Vet Clinic team in 2024. She has several years of human medicine reception experience and 2 1/2 years of vet receptionist experience. Being a veterinary receptionist is her favorite job she has ever had. She enjoys talking to the clients and seeing their fur babies.

Shelly grew up in Holland and resides in her childhood home with her high school sweetheart Randy, whom she married in 1993. Shelly and her husband have one adult daughter, Kayla, 2 dogs (Teagan and Rylee) and nine cats. (Oliver, Jewel, Nikki, Vegas, Linq, Caesar, Sahara, Aria and Lux). 6 of the cats were foster fails, as Shelly has a love for animals and a big heart. She also has two grand dogs, Ella and Mystic.

When they have free time they enjoy boating, traveling, swimming in their pool, and spending time with their pets.

Ella was born and raised in Hamilton, Michigan, and joined the JVC team in 2024. She is also attending Michigan State University where she is pursuing a degree in Integrative Biology. After undergraduate, she plans to attend Veterinary school with dreams of becoming a mixed animal veterinarian. She raised pigs growing up and has a love for farm animals. In her free time, she enjoys going to the beach, hiking, and spending time with friends, her family and their dog Oliver.

Alex has been working as a CSR for Jelsema Vet Clinic since Fall 2020. She studied Natural Resource Management at GVSU but decided that the veterinary field was where she felt at home. Alex enjoys spending time with her husband. Their favorite hobby is riding dirt bikes. Alex also loves crafting and learning new ways to make art. Alex and her husband have two dogs, Buddy and Dixie, and recently welcomed a baby boy to their family. Alex works from home for JVC as as remote CSR. Most of the e-mail and text communications from the clinic originate from Alex and she works very hard to answer questions and keep everyone updated.