NEWS
PREPARING
FOR OUR FUTURE....SOMERSET HILLS
DEBUTS THE PEEWEE CLASS !
by Sue Goldberg
Saturday, September 5th marked the
80th show of the Somerset Hills
Kennel Club. Our theme was,
“Remembering our Past; Preparing for
our Future”. In keeping with that
theme, we held the first ever PeeWee
Class east of the Mississippi. It
was a glorious day, sunny and warm
with cloudless blue skies. When I
commented on the great weather to
our very capable Show Chair, Lisa
Warren, she informed me it was
because this time, she “changed
weather vendors!”
Our goal was to introduce youngsters ages 5
through 9 years old,
especially those new to AKC, to Junior
Showmanship, giving them a
safe, positive experience that would
hopefully entice them to continue
to participate and become more
involved our sport. The PeeWee class
is neither a competition nor a
handling class. I played the “Judge”, for
want of a better term, but there was
no actual judging. With safety a
primary focus, only one PeeWee unit
was in the ring at a time. Each
PeeWee unit consisted of the child,
his or her parent or guardian, and
their dog. We welcomed purebreds,
AKC registered or not, as well as
mixed breeds. The class was
pre-entered and a nominal entry fee was
charged, merely as some assurance
that the PeeWee would actually
show up! Lisa, a huge supporter of
this endeavor, received the preentries.
The more experienced Juniors who
were entered in the Master Class
were asked to volunteer to act as a
“buddy” to each PeeWee, both
before and after the class. Dawn
Clerico, 4-H leader and AKC
exhibitor, Tina Pirro, another 4-H
leader, as well as club member Lee
Matyola were outside the ring
assisting the Peewees. Marjorie Tuff, a
longtime Juniors advocate, did a
great job as the in-ring steward.
“Buddies” Rebecca Flood; Salena
McCloud; Renee McGlone; Wendy
Perry, a former Junior and now
Juniors judge; Faith, Emma and
Sophia Rogers were a big help
encouraging and assisting their
PeeWees.
More Photos click here
and here
AKC Marketplace click here:
Are you offended by the
unending breeder bashing that occurs in our society today? Here is a
chance to make your voice heard and fight back.
With thanks to Director Rob Brigham, Somerset Hills Kennel Club is getting very good press! Follow the link to view the article that Rob wrote that appears in “AKCommunicates Weekly”.
