Dear Maria, and the Cypress team, I am writing yo to offer my most sincere condolences on the passing of Tom. I did not know him personally, and never had the chance to really talk to him. As a result I fear that I have missed out on a golden chance to learn a great deal. I knew of Tom, had seen him at nationals, and other dog shows. I can remember sitting out by the fire pit in Scottsdale AZ listening while he and a group of other very knowledgeable breeders discussed dogs, but I did not contribute. Tom could be a bit intimidating to a newbie, and that I was, and in reality still am, but you knew just listening to him that he was a wealth of knowledge. I never had the courage to engage him in conversation, and that now is my loss. Many will miss him, and many more will miss that they never got the chance to know him, and tap into that wealth of knowlege. He is gone, but his legacy will live on in his dogs and in the lives he touched. In the end, that is the greatest honor one can have. May God smile down on you and yours during this difficult time. Cindy Gialluca Cyneca German Shepherds http://www.gsdcofaustin.org/ ============================================================================ POST is Copyrighted 2006. All material remains the property of the original author and of GSD Communication, Inc. NO REPRODUCTIONS or FORWARDS of any kind are permitted without prior permission of the original author AND of the Showgsd-l Management. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. ALL PERSONS ARE ON NOTICE THAT THE FORWARDING, REPRODUCTION OR USE IN ANY MANNER OF ANY MATERIAL WHICH APPEARS ON SHOWGSD-L WITHOUT THE EXPRESS PERMISSION OF ALL PARTIES TO THE POST AND THE LIST MANAGEMENT IS EXPRESSLY FORBIDDEN, AND IS A VIOLATION OF LAW. VIOLATORS OF THIS PROHIBITION WILL BE PROSECUTED. For assistance, please contact the List Management at admin@xxxxxxxxxxxx VISIT OUR WEBSITE - URL temporarily deleted due to AOL issues ============================================================================