Christmas In July, Sunday 20th July 2014 Today’s Christmas In July day at Aranga Dog Activity Centre in Donvale, Melbourne, was a HUGE success. Thirty-something exceedingly happy and beautiful Airedales attended by sixty-something adoring owners ~ a kindly weather god or two, loads of wonderful food that appeared on a non-stop conveyor belt, and in keeping with the Santa theme, the delightful scene of Airedale + Owner + Santa (Him? Her? self) in a cosy Christmassy setting captured on film for everyone who wished for it. It all made for a stunningly successful day. Something AireNet is very good at doing, and it just keeps getting better all the time. Thanks are due to everyone in the AireNet Team, but I think everyone will agree that nobody is more deserving of High Five Paws recognition than our very devoted and truly huge-hearted Jenny Patience. The planning and organising that goes into such a day is beyond measure; from start to finish, not just of the day itself, but the months of thought and action that take place in the lead up to the day. And Jenny fitted it all in in the midst of her own life demands, which are considerable. Thank you Jen, you are a bright and shining jewel in the AireNet crown. The food handling team was as always, superbly managed by the astonishingly ever-calm Roz Eldridge, with Sara & Ella; Anne Prowse and Diane Nicholls equally everywhere, stirring soup, taking around finger food, carrying trays, collecting bowls and cups, setting out salads and desserts; Keith & Eric manning the bbq and ensuring nobody could possibly go hungry. It was very special to have Denise Keith from Leura in the Blue Mountains, NSW, amongst us to help welcome everyone ~ thanks Denise, we’ve loved your visit. Mary Tuohy took care of the Welcome Table with collecting lunch money, and handing out name badges (beautifully made by Julie O’Grady) and door tickets for the lucky prizes, and Sally Martin and Suellen Entwisle did great business at the merchandise table. The other star of the show was Mme SantaPaws (unidentified) who, with her Assistant Elf (looking remarkably like Ann Field) taking care of the orderly procession of Airedales wanting to sit on Santa’s lap, gave a fantastic performance. We had the special pleasure of our wonderful AireNet photographer John Murray, all the way from Whyalla in South Australia, who took great images of each of the sitters, in a specially decorated Santa’s Den. It looked very festive, combining the creative talents of Helen Greatrex and Ann Field with extra props provided by Anne Marie Serrano, who wasn’t able to come over from Adelaide but sent them with John. Other interstate visitors were KahLin and Mark Wormell from Sydney, who have combined a little holiday in the Yarra Valley (staying at Wombat Bend) with the very exciting collection on Monday of their brand new puppy Muffin, from Airewood Park (Lyn Duff). It’s always great fun to put faces to names and the dawning recognition of ‘oh! That’s who you are!” was frequently heard around the room. Our other interstate visitors were also extremely welcome, though with a bittersweet edge to their visit. Sharyn White and her beautiful daughter Stella flew from northern NSW to Melbourne on Saturday, with Airedales Fergus (2) and Luna (1), to deliver these two precious furkids to the loving home and arms of Kath, David and Felicity Wright. Circumstances are such that Sharyn made the courageous decision to have them adopted as a pair, and the Wrights stepped up for them in an instant. We know Fergus and Luna could not have a more wonderful home and loving family. But there wasn’t a dry eye (especially mine) as I delivered the news of this event and gave Fergus and Luna their AireNet bandanas. It was a very emotional time for all, and the bravery of Stella and Sharyn will long remain in our minds, I know. The Dog Park itself is a marvellous venue, and we thank Meg Downie for her vision and hard work in getting it established in the City of Manningham. It is a resource for the community that is open to all, and is clearly extremely well used and popular. And thank you to everyone for participating once again in a truly outstanding AireNet event. The dogs all had an absolute blast ~ you only have to look at the many photos to see just how they enjoyed the company and play and fun with each other. And that, of course, is what it’s all about. The Airedales !
Posted on: Sun, 20 Jul 2014 14:19:15 +0000
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