NOMINATION FOR OUTSTANDING SPORTSMANSHIP AWARD
I wish to nominate a club member whom I have never met. She has only one Field Spaniel, her first, and has been a member of this club for only a few years.
I make this nomination because I believe that I know what is most important to know about her related to deserving this award, based on what I have observed of her unselfish willingness to help others in the good and fun times and through difficult and tragic occurrences.
Her name is GAIL SCHULJAN. I have had to ask someone who actually knows her to give me some background information for inclusion with this nomination.
Although Gail has only been part of the Field Spaniel world for just under 3 years, she is not new to purebred dogs. She’s owned Springers for years, and been active in Springer Rescue and the Long Island Springer Club for a number of years. She has always been a competitor in Obedience with her Springers. Her Field Spaniel, Ch Wicksford’s Archey McRally RN, CGC, TDI, “Archey,” is her first Conformation dog.
What I have seen is someone who jumped in and worked tirelessly to help when Julie Jernstrom’s Jake went missing. She wasn’t just there for a few days. She never stopped organizing, phoning, strategizing and e-mailing to try to find Jake. She and her husband, Scott, even made several long trips into the area to help search for Jake. More recently, when Linda Caldwell’s Freeway ran away, she once again jumped right in, got on her phone and computer, to help find Freeway.
On the lighter side, many of us have been the beneficiaries of her generosity through her support of our club events via her unique trophy donations. She has an embroidery machine and creates beautiful trophies. She has also made snoods, which she donated to Nationals and Rescue as fundraisers. She always makes sure that Obedience and Rally trophies are offered at Nationals and Supported Entries.
Although I do not know the details, what we can all see from Archey’s titles is that Gail does outreach work with her Field. I was told that she takes him on visits to local nursing homes. She’s not just pursuing ego gratifying wins at dog shows.
A truly unselfish person, Gail is not out there bragging and “tooting her own horn.” We don’t need to know this person to be acquainted with her generous spirit. She is clearly an asset to our breed and our club.
Submitted by Maxine Reed
|
