Dr. Jonathan Friend was a pioneer in helping establish and build Oklahoma State University’s Center for Veterinary Health Sciences. Course work for the college was initiated in March, 1948, and Jonathan joined the faculty six months later, in September. He was hired by OSU President Henry Bennett and Dean of the College, Clarence McElroy, as the seventh member of the faculty. During his 38-year tenure, he served under six deans and two interim deans and taught more than 2,000 students, before he retired in 1986. Friend died November 13, 2008. In this oral history interview excerpt from the O-STATE Stories oral history collection, Dr. Friend looks back on the early history of the Center for Veterinary Health Sciences. For more, visit the Oklahoma Oral History Research Program at the OSU Library.