gabassetrescue.org Blog

This has been a long week as we lost some Basset friends.  First, Jean & Elisa lost Tonka.  He had only missed one Waddle – we just expected him to always be around.  What a gentle boy!

Then Al & Carol Wilson from Dwight found out that Mildred had cancer – 2 days later, it was determined that it was time to let her go.  Since Al was out of town, Emmy went to the clinic to be with Carol as Dr. Cronin took care of Mildred’s pain.

Finally, today I received a note from Hyatt Naganishi that Momo had just gone the Bridge.  Hyatt brought her to The Waddle so that she could take Momo’s picture with me – I was honored.

Momo died at age 16 – what a wonderful life she had!  Although Hyatt had a little problem with our language, she knew how to express her feelings about her love for Momo.  Because Hyatt often had to travel to Japan to be with her family, she felt badly about leaving Momo – here’s a short portion of her write-up for the Memorial page that expresses this feeling:  “She always waited for me with forgiveness, when I was away every so often.  For me, she was the home itself in America.”

Bless these 3 wonderful Bassets.  All of their stories will soon be on the Memorial Page.

One event ends and the next begins immediately – but I love it!  Now we all are starting to focus on the Basset Ball (really it’s the GABR Auction) and this is when we need everyone’s help.  Many things set our event apart from most others – Jennifer’s Garden, our auction chair (Kelli Zopfi), our emotional ties to these dogs – the list goes on and on.  But the best part of the evening is seeing all of the magnificent “stuff” that our supporters find and donate to us.

I challenge you to begin looking for unique items for the Auction.  The best things are absolutely the “one of a kind” items that nobody has seen.  Since I conduct other auctions, I see the type of items that are simply forgettable.  Our auction items are absolutely extraordinary.  I’ve seen auctions with wrench sets, screwdrivers, folding chairs donated by a local bank, used items that wouldn’t sell at a garage sale – you get the picture.

What talents do you have?  Are you an artist, woodworker, writer – you get the picture.  Can you help?  Can you agree to fill a table of 8 at the auction?  Our audience has always been between 210-240.   Our goal is to get 300 people into Jennifer’s this year – wouldn’t that be exciting?  If you haven’t been there, it’s unbelievable.  But remember the most important fact is that it provides the funding necessary for us to continue with “business as usual”.

What can you do to help?  If you’re already involved, what can you do to improve the entire evening?  Sounds like fun, doesn’t it!