Making our inner
child proud.

PETER BROWN, DVM

SENIOR ADVISOR & CO-FOUNDER

After joining Chuckanut Valley Veterinary Clinic in 1991, I, along with my amazing partners Greg Ingman and Jake Searle, focused on creating a family environment that provided great medicine. Every decision was made with the question “is it best for the pet?”. By leading with medicine, our financial success was amazing.

It was also critical that we had a family culture, which we worked tirelessly to create. This culture led to long-term retention of our doctors and staff. Retention of clients depends on staff consistency. Chuckanut had the most amazing team, as well as clients. The consistent double-digit revenue growth over two decades happened because of our great people and our focus on always providing the best medicine.

With the success of Chuckanut (leading the industry in % diagnostics, ATC, and client compliance) in a rural part of Washington state, I was presented with many great opportunities to teach veterinarians throughout the world (North America, Europe, Asia, Australia). The focus of my presentations has been on how to use the “wow factor” of customer experience to enable hospitals to practice best medicine and drive financial success.

Cara is a dream come true for me. I have been searching for an opportunity to build a company that represents what I have learned through my Chuckanut journey. I love this profession; it is the greatest career in the world, but I worry about the future. Consolidation often damages the family culture that made a hospital successful. Job satisfaction is dropping, and suicide rates are climbing. Cara will address these issues with its family approach.

MITCH BURRESS

DIRECTOR OF FINANCE

Originally from central Indiana, Mitch brings a diverse financial background and passion for analytics-driven decision-making to Cara. He holds degrees in Accounting and Technology Management from Indiana University (Go Hoosiers!). Mitch began his career in Public Accounting, specializing in Higher Education and Public Transit audits, before transitioning to Managed Care. There, he led teams in financial and regulatory reporting, financial planning and analysis, analytics, rate development, and provider payment strategy. Passionate about analytics and problem-solving, Mitch is dedicated to leveraging data to ensure compliance, enhance financial performance, and support quality care, whether for humans or animals. Now calling San Diego home, he enjoys traveling, music, and spending time with his partner, Kate, and their Saint Bernard, Penny.

LAURA ALARCON

VP OF PEOPLE

Our VP of People, Laura Alarcon, has been a pet lover since birth. She fondly remembers all of the adventures (and trouble) she and her childhood German Shorthair Pointer, Chewy, got into together. Her bond with Chewy led to her being an avid dog lover and snuggler. Her love for dogs is abundantly clear when she gravitates towards any dog in the room or on the street. She promises she is working on being better at acknowledging the human with the dog prior to getting down on the ground with her new doggie friend. Her love for dogs continued throughout her pursuit of a bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts in Photography, where she photographed and exhibited images of local shelter pets to bring awareness to all the amazing pets that could be adopted. While in college, she adopted a toy poodle named Roxanna (Roxy for short). Little did Laura know in 2007, after Roxy had a Femoral Head Ostectomy (FHO), a bad car accident that luckily both Roxy and Laura survived, and a boss that caused Laura to swear to herself that she would never treat any person the way they did to her, Laura left retail management and got a job at Roxy’s veterinarian’s office as a veterinary assistant all in the same day. It’s a long, whirlwind of a story, and Laura truly believes all these events happened to help her find her way to an industry that she is truly passionate about and strives to make a difference in for all pets and humans involved.

Laura Alarcon comes to us with over fifteen years of veterinary and HR leadership experience. During her time as a Practice Manager in corporate medicine, she discovered her true passion for developing individuals, which ultimately led her to specializing in Human Resources. In 2015, Laura stepped out of the veterinary hospitals she managed in South Florida and started working with a startup veterinary management services company based out of Portland, Oregon. During her time there, she helped build and lead the HR & Training department, created training content for their Learning Management System that she also helped build, and worked alongside private practice leaders across the nation on how to solve their various HR implementation gaps. Laura is passionate about finding resources and solutions for burnout, compassion fatigue, and employee retention within our industry, which is why she most recently expanded upon her Human Resource Management certification and became a certified Workplace Mental Health Ally.

Currently, Laura resides in the Bothell, WA area with her husband, Eddie, and their two daughters. When her toddler fraternal twin daughters finally go to bed, Laura enjoys a good Netflix binge but can also be found in her kitchen baking a dessert of some sort to satisfy her never-ending sweet tooth. Laura brings to our growing family of four-legged team members two toy Poodles, Gin & Tonic, as well as her hairless cat, Peach.

IRIS KOCH

DIRECTOR OF MARKETING

Hailing from the chilly streets of Toronto, Canada, our Director of Marketing, Iris Koch (rhymes with “scotch”), has been a lifelong animal lover.

Over the years, Iris has been “fur mama” to an adorable gang of animals. Including, but not limited to: her first bunny – Jacob (found on a farm in Upstate New York) and her first dog – Ria, an English Cocker Spaniel, two rescue kittens – Sugar and Yoshi, her rescue Husky – Amos, and her current rescue dog – Charlie the girl pup, a cheeky Doxxie/MinPin mix.

Fur babies aside, Iris has two boys who keep her on her toes every day and bring the most joy to her world! Being a boy-mom means being immersed in Minecraft, Pokémon, and all of the Nintendo titles, football, soccer, and tennis on the weekends, race cars, train tracks, and monster trucks. And she wouldn’t have it any other way!

As a seasoned director with over 15 years of marketing experience and over 9 years of leading marketing teams in the veterinary space, Iris’s passions truly lie in helping people and their businesses succeed.

Within her marketing career, Iris has had the privilege of leading high-performing teams at large international corporations like The Walt Disney Company and National Veterinary Associates. Bringing a high level of quality and impactful vision, Iris fosters collaborative environments where creativity and innovation thrive.

Above all, Iris is passionate about building relationships and connecting with like-minded professionals and organizations, creating stories that resonate, and delivering results that truly matter.

As someone deeply committed to personal growth, Iris is an advanced yoga teacher. Yoga not only helps Iris maintain balance in both her personal and professional life, but it also strengthens her ability to lead with mindfulness and resilience.

Outside of Marketing, Iris is crafty and an avid knitter, loves to hike in the beautiful outdoors, spends time with friends, is a movie/TV nerd, and can’t live without a strong cup of coffee!

Iris also loves traveling the world and in 2023 she and her family lived in Dubai, where she had the privilege of immersing herself in a vibrant and diverse market, further expanding her ability to connect with global audiences. This experience, along with extensive travels throughout Europe, has deeply enriched both her professional perspective and personal life, helping her develop a strong appreciation for different cultures and a global outlook on Marketing.

Nick Coorey

CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER

Nick brings a wealth of experience and passion to Cara Veterinary, where his work is fueled by a deep love for animals and an unwavering commitment to the people who care for them. With over a decade of senior leadership in healthcare operations, Nick seeks to be a compassionate, forward-thinking leader who focuses on efficiency, fostering collaboration, and enhancing service quality across multi-site organizations.

Nick’s journey reflects his dedication to creating systems that not only work but also resonate with the people they serve. His career has spanned diverse roles—from overseeing neonatal and pediatric healthcare programs to optimizing surgical center operations—each marked by desire to implement innovative strategies, and build strong, motivated teams. Nick is also a proud graduate of the University of Cincinnati (BA) and Northern Kentucky University (MPA). Go Bearcats and Norse!

When not immersed in work at Cara Veterinary, Nick enjoys traveling, running, delving into sci-fi and horror books, and spending time with his partner, Kevin. Nick’s life and career reflect the belief that operational excellence and heartfelt care go hand in hand, ensuring a brighter, healthier future for pets, their families, and the veterinary teams who support them.