[nagdu] Dog names, Sundance

[Tamara Smith-Kinney]

AnnaLisa,

Wow!  That's almost movie material, isn't it?  I am glad that Roger's
memorial namesake is living up to her role!  /smile/

Tami Smith-Kinney

-----Original Message-----
From: nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf
Of AnnaLisa Anderson
Sent: Sunday, February 07, 2010 4:11 PM
To: NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users
Subject: Re: [nagdu] Dog names, Sundance

Hi Tracy,

I wondered if anyone would bite, heheh.  Well, this is how Sundance got her
name.  It's kind of a long story (but a good one), just to warn anyone who
wants to stop reading now.

Sunny's raiser, Elizabeth, is a realtor.  She met a guy who was a pilot, had
his own lear jet (however you spell that), and was looking for a piece of
land where he could have his own private air strip.  Elizabeth told me this
guy, whose name was Roger, was a bachelor, quite handsome and a real
charmer, so they became friends.  No, not that kind of friends... she is
married and almost old enough to be his mother.  Anyway, Roger had two
golden retrievers as pets, Butch and Sundance.  Elizabeth got to know both
dogs, though Butch was an old dog at the time she knew Roger, and Sundance
was a puppy.  Roger's Sundance was a female too.  Roger used to fly in air
shows, like at Oshkosh, and he used to give plane rides to people without
charge.  This is what he was doing at a show in La Crosse, WI, one weekend.
There was a newlywed couple there, and he took the bride up one day and the
groom the next.  When he was flying with the groom, Roger lost control of
the plane because somehow the engines came unbolted from the wings.  He
tried very hard to land the airplane safely but just couldn't regain
control, and both he and his passenger were killed.  Elizabeth decided that,
in Roger's memory,  the next pup she raised would be named Sundance.

Elizabeth told me the two Sundances did meet each other and played together.
The original Sundance is living with Roger's parents and is about 10 years
old now.  Elizabeth has shared some of the emails I have sent her about me
and Sunny with Roger's parents, and she told me they really enjoy reading
them.

Now you see why I wouldn't want to change her name?  I am so glad Leader
makes it possible for us to meet with our dogs' raiser now if we wish to.
Otherwise I would never have known of this very moving tribute.  You just
never know where your dog's name might spring from.  At Leader, the raisers
are allowed to name the pups, and I can tell you, they give very serious
thought to the name they choose.

AnnaLisa and Sundance



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