[ SHOWGSD-L ] Re: NOT...Throwing in the towel, and then some
- From: Robert Neiman <bnbgsds2000@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: marhaven@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx, showgsd-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Sun, 5 Dec 2010 17:54:47 -0800 (PST)
The club lost a member because she got tired of the rude sarcastic way people
were treating her. I covered her membership for 2010(she says her renewal was
lost I suspect it was her way of being nice to me)but decided this year to not
cover it.
Bob Neiman / Walled Lake, Mich.
Owner Barkalot's Felonious Assault AKA Brat and the other half of B'N'B
Breeder/owner of UKC GR Ch.B'N'B-Barkalot's Cherish RN
Co-owner of UKC ChSandyCreek-B'N'B-WC's Christmas Star AKA Echo
Co-owner of Ketlyn's Black Widow
Proud member of the GSDC of Am. since 1996
--- On Sat, 12/4/10, Carolyn Martello <marhaven@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
From: Carolyn Martello <marhaven@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Subject: [ SHOWGSD-L ] NOT...Throwing in the towel, and then some
To: hickoryhillgsd1@xxxxxxxxxxxx, "showgsd-l" <showgsd-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Saturday, December 4, 2010, 2:26 PM
Great Post Christine......and unfortunately too true.
During some of the "good old days" and the dogs and people were no better then
than they
are now.....many of them now are the same people ......just a lot of new
bloodlines now .
Unless we stupidly lock ourselves into that same old corner of using a
"winning" line over and
over......all over again.... no matter how dominant some of the faults.....and
like the National
Debt leave it to the next generation to solve......
<G>
Like you ...I believe our future is in our Youth also. The young ones that
get into it now have to LOVE
this Breed and have a real heart and desire to learn and improve. Otherwise
there are just too many
other things they can be doing. They are great to be around! Their
passion runs deep....and their
concern is as much for what is right 'about' and 'for' the Breed as for any
big win.
WHY people refuse to use a young talent is beyond me!!
We often see new faces.......and all they really want to do is find the
quickest ladder up....and so
they hang onto the coat tails of who they consider the top handler or 'group'
and become totally
dependent upon them for wins without learning about this Breed.
If there is a great failure in our sport....it is this inane desire by some to
have the same handler and
to send their dogs off for the big win. The quality of the dog no longer
seems to be the issue....as
learning is not in the schedule. Being "in" is "in" ....similar to 8th grade
mentality we all hated.
( This "in" syndrome should have been given up in High School ) Now we see
it at dog shows!!
<G>
If the handlers are going to All Breeds....it does not mean our Specialties
will fail...unless we
choose to follow!
Typically we don't go to All Breeds as some of the judges are discouraging.and
the size of the ring
is very discouraging. If there is a good GSD judge at an All Breed
show.....and a decent size
ring......then it's another good show as far as I'm concerned.
BUT....Why not use the young people around that want to handle and learn and be
involved.......take
advantage of their talent at the Specialties if there is a shortage of big
time handlers. We do not
have to make a big Exodus to follow the handlers to All Breeds IMO. <G>
If it is a good judge......they will see your dog even with a young unknown
face as long as the dog
is quality and handled correctly. If the judge is not good enough to see
the dog......then why give
them an entry?? Let's 'out' them with new faces. <G>
Same with a Committee......if no one will listen because you are
'new'......that is a real disservice.
At times.... "new" ideas are what we need. Why bother if no one listens.
You are right Christine. None of this will change ONE iota......until we get
egos out of the way and
the priorities change to the actual Breed and the dogs that got us involved to
begin with.
We can't blame ourselves for getting old...........we CAN do something about
what we leave behind.
Carolyn marhaven@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
www.Marhaven.com
----- Original Message -----
From: Hickoryhill To: showgsd-l Sent: Saturday, December 04, 2010 8:13 AM
Subject: [ SHOWGSD-L ] Throwing in the towel, and then some
I found Ms. Galasso's article, informative and truthful. Intersting that she
referenced a topic that I had touched on last week or so about a lack of
entries at specialties, and why this was occuring. It seemed that some handlers
were opting to go to all-breeds vs a couple of speicalty shows that were being
held on the same weekend. I suggestd that perhaps handlers were recognizing
they could earn the same, run less, spend less time in the ring and have an
opportunity to make more if they won breed and went into group. Plus since all
for the most part were getting older, there would be less physical exertion. In
other words, more money, less work, follow the money trail. This ultimately
lead to a discussion about getting new members, money and workers. The basic
concensus seemed to be that more club members were needed for work and money. I
wrote the below hoping to stir some type of consciousness within the "core"
group I refer to in my below
e-mail.Pretty certain, I didn'
t
reach them. While I was hoping to start a spririted debate/discussion with
my e-mail, it was pretty well met with silence and a few crickets chirpping in
the background followed by a sudden change to a different topic of discussion.
I thought I would share the below with this list. I don't consider it cross
posting, I am the author, no reference has been made as to who has said what on
the "other list" and if it violates some "rule"..oh well..spank me. So here
goes:
I have read with interest that last several posts about the "contoversal"
question. Seems we either have people who want to reminicse about the good old
days, or gain new members to simply contribute to work or income. Perhaps in
the later statement, we can find the crux of the whole problem. If your primary
goal is to gain new members to increase workers and income for the club, your
new members will not be around long.
People want to BELONG to organizations where they feel appreciated, included
and have fun.When I read statements such as " We need to build our coffers" or
"We need workers and income to keep the club going." then this tells me that
there really isn't a GENUINE interest in getting new members, it is about
money( which I referenced before, its always about money) and workers to do the
work that others either don't want to do, or can't do anymore. New people and
young people will WILLINGLY work for a club if they feel that they are truly a
part of the organization. However, don't expect most to stick around for any
length of time if they feel they are only being used for their dues and to
work.
For those who might not know, Steve and I both started in performance;Steve
in Schutzhund and I in obedience. When I started, I too had my own equipment,
and eventually taught all-breed obedience classes. I became interested in
conformation via obedience. Back then, conformation was king, and I could
barely find enough dogs in obedience at specialties to qualify for a leg toward
a title, so I attended many all-breed obedience trials. This was about 30 years
ago or so. It was then that I also started getting the Review. The same core
group of people who were running the GSDCA then, are the same group as now, but
only 30+ years older.Although I appreciate their years of dedication to the
breed, not much thought was given to getting or maintaining new members.They
didn't have to. Entries were large, specialty clubs were thriving. It just
doesn't seem important to think about the future and the "What ifs" when your
at the top of the game. When all was
going g
reat, we failed to recognize that more attention should have been given to
the future. So here we are now doing damage control, when we should have been
excercising preventative medicine.
Steve and I primarily associate with younger as well as newer people in this
sport. I hear first hand their frustration about offering to volunteer for
committees, or to work in different capacities for the GSDCA only to either be
turned away, or never contacted at all . It doesn't take long to discern that
all this talk about getting new people and young people involved in the sport
is simply that..just talk..no action.Don't beleive me? Get out an old Review,
look at the judges, exhibitors, board members, handlers. How many new faces do
you see? How many faces are missing? There are a few new ones, but not many and
certainly not enough new faces to offset the normal attrition that takes place
in any organization( ie, death, illness, lifestyle changes, income change,etc).
The GSDCA is not alone. There are plenty of old crusty organizations who used
to be around, but aren't anymore because the "status quo" wanted to exclude
anyone who might think differently than they did. On the other hand, political
organizations recognize the need for youth.They employ their energy and
resourcefulness, plus political groups recognize that youth has ENERGY, which
older folks don't often have! The few young people I know in this sport are
innovative, strong, willing to work, want to please and have fresh youthful
ideas. They are fun to be around and keep you young at heart!Most of all they
are eager to learn about the breed and share their ideas about the breed as
well. You might be surprised what you learn about the breed from young people
or newcomers.It always good to have a fresh pair of eyes to help you look at
things from a different perspecive! Youth and newcomers keep an organization
viable. Any organization that lacks a
GENUINE interest(
not for money or work) in gaining new members and young people will
eventually whither away, to think otherwise is to be in denial.
In closing, I would like to say that I beleive that the above e-mail won't
make an iota worth of difference, it will simply make some uncomfortable, some
angry, or some beleive that I am crazier than they orginally thought I was as
being direct and cutting to the heart of the problem often has that affect on
people.
__,_._,___
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is Copyrighted 2010. 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.
Each Author is responsible for the content of his/her post. This group and its
administrators are not responsible for the comments or opinions expressed in
any post.
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@xxxxxxxxxxx
VISIT OUR WEBSITE - http://showgsd.org
NATIONAL BLOG - http://gsdnational.blogspot.com/
===========================================================================
============================================================================
POST is Copyrighted 2010. 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.
Each Author is responsible for the content of his/her post. This group and its
administrators are not responsible for the comments or opinions expressed in
any post.
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@xxxxxxxxxxx
VISIT OUR WEBSITE - http://showgsd.org
NATIONAL BLOG - http://gsdnational.blogspot.com/
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