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A Short History and a Special Thanks

As we all know, it is virtually impossible to take a 7 week old puppy from a cute, cuddly ball of fur, and transform him/her into a competitive and successful athlete without the help, input, and encouragement of many others.

This was true before I became disabled and became monumentally so after I went into the wheelchair. First of all, I was fortunate enough to work with the labrador breed... intelligent, loyal, forgiving, and full of heart. Without those qualities striving for excellence would be impossible. Rocky, Ty, and Oprah made the transition from working with an able bodied handler to a disabled one without any problem.

I became disabled in 1988 and was blessed to be able to train and run my dogs in field trials from my chair until the mid 1990's. At that time, the progression of my MS made it impossible to travel and give hand signals... pretty important stuff!!! But from day one, (beginning in 1980) I had the priviledge of working with amateurs with vast knowledge, like John Trzepacz (FC NAFC 2X CNAFC River Oaks Corky and a multitude of other field champions), and my best friend and partner, Joe Pilar (FC NAFC River Oaks Rascal). John and Martha Russell.... thank you so much John for taking over and doing so well with Ty. God rewarded you for your selflessness with, in my opinion, the finest running bitch in the country today, FC AFC Adams Acres Cherokee Rose. A big thanks to Linden Strandberg for all of his and Mickey's (Mioaks Retrievers) help in getting Oprah qualified for her last National Amateur, and my very dear friend, Thom Felinski, who got an Amateur win with Oprah and threw countless birds for all of my dogs.

I worked with, in my opinion, the finest young dog trainer in the country, Bruce Curtis of Curtis Kennels, who did the basics on all the "kids", and Pat and Merry at Esprit Kennels, for their outstanding winter training and who ran Rocky, Ty and Oprah for me when I was unable to do so.

For everyone whoever threw a bird, cut a field, took an entry, shared a laugh or a cry... THANK YOU SO MUCH. There are just too many of you to mention individually!!

And lastly, but certainly not least, my heartfelt thanks for the love, encouragement, patience and financial support of my family, without whom none of this would be possible. Thank you Ken and Ryan......I love you both very much!