Club History

It started with talk among owner/exhibitors of wheatens, which was a small group of folks, for sure. We discussed our isolation as exhibitors here in Florida, except in the height of winter when there were two weekends of shows that attracted our fellow wheaten lovers. We needed to group together to share knowledge, support each other and enjoy events centered on our dogs. A local club seemed to be the answer.

Being a somewhat recent transplant from a geographic area that had a fair number of wheaten fanciers, I had some good contacts. Between those and the contacts I could make through the national club, I began to write letters (no email then) in the summer of 1994, asking for names and addresses of contacts in Florida of potential members.

We planned a picnic for October, to “test the waters” and see how many people would be interested in forming a club. We were happy to have a surprisingly good turnout. We continued to develop contacts. By summer of 1995, we were ready to get serious.

In September 1995, my living room became a gathering place for a core group of people. Using the AKC guidelines on forming local clubs, we developed a constitution, bylaws and club name, something hardly anyone calls us.

Did you ever wonder why in the world we chose a name that when reduced to its letters resembles a spoonful of alphabet soup? AKC rules for local club include using geographical boundaries in the club name. Clubs should be limited to a 50-mile radius and cannot include the entire state. In keeping with that, we pushed the boundary to its full potential, adding “Greater Tampa Bay” to the breed name, thus naming ourselves something hardly anyone calls us.

We held our first official membership meeting November 11, 1995, on the grounds of the Ocala dog show. The mission, constitution, bylaws, and calendar were refined and approved. Part of our original mission was to combat the sale of puppy mill dogs, which appeared in Florida from Iowa, Kansas, and Mississippi mills.

Very often those dogs were ending up in shelters and newspaper ads were the foundations for backyard breeding programs. Buyers of those puppies were not always ready for wheaten ownership and may or may not be good matches for a wheaten as a pet. Since I was the Florida rescue chairman of Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier Club of America (SCWTCA), rescue became a function of the Club right away. Our rescue was always one of the most active in the US.

Our Annual Dinner, set for January starting in 1996, was the start of the club year and we held our first elections then. Annually for the first years, we participated in a variety of educational events from the dog tent at the Florida State Fair to grooming workshops, health clinics and identification clinics. Remember when we tattooed the thighs of our dogs? That was in the years before microchips were available. How tolerant our wheatens were. We even produced a grooming videotape from one of our grooming workshops, featuring a National Club Foundation member, Sue Goldberg.

In the early years, fun matches were held often. Sometimes they were in conjunction with other clubs like the Tampa Bay Terrier Club. At other times we held them with other educational events. Our goal was to balance events that would be of interest to pet owners and exhibitors alike. By 1996, we had grown from 27 charter members to 49 members.

I was honored to be President of the Club from its inception in 1995 to 1998, and then to serve as vice president from 1999 to 2002.

Marj Lorand, SCWTCGTB President, 1995-1998 and 2010-2011

Marj Lorand and I were anxious to get all the wheaten friends that we showed with together to form a club. We had our first meeting at the Ocala Show Grounds in November of 1995 after we all showed at the Pasco County Kennel Club show. Attending was Marj and Mik Lorand, myself and my husband, Ray, Marilyn Matthes and her husband Mike, Jackie Kase, Gina Columbo, Cindy and Vernon Pierce, Jim and Judi Nolton, Bette and David Eckstrom, Walter and Barbara Bates, Marilyn and Harold Stowell, Jodi and David Duda. I think that was all, hopefully I didn’t forget anyone. .

Judi Nolton won the raffle prize that we brought home for her from Montgomery 1995. We presented it to Judi at that first meeting. The prize was an afghan loomed by Gay Sherman Dunlap, made of wheaten hair. I have included a photo below of her holding the afghan. It was beautiful and very soft.

That day Marj was elected our first president. I was vice president, Ray was treasurer, Marilyn Matthes was recording secretary. I wish I could remember who else was on the Board. We all had great enthusiasm and were anxious to get the Club going. We asked Marilyn Stowell to work on the logo for us. I still have note cards with the logo on them.

Marj and I traded positions on the Club Board through various years. I was president for a few years. Ray was treasurer and editor of Wheatie Words, the Club newsletter. All of us had a dream that someday we would become a sanctioned Club. We held puppy matches, herding instinct events, health seminars, grooming seminars and picnics. Walter always played Santa at the December picnic.

What a time we had; we would meet at various dog shows throughout the year. Being in Florida made that especially easy. We even started rescuing wheatens.

These memories are from so long time ago, but we had good times – so much has happened since then. Our breed has gone through many changes. We now have a DNA marker for the PLN gene. Time will tell if it is a benefit for the breed.

Lynn Cone, SCWTCGTB President, 1999-2002

Thinking back over the last 20 years of the CLUB—SCWTCGTB (that’s a mouthful!), I realize I have held every office, except corresponding secretary. It sounded so simple when I started by filling in for someone on the Board. Then someone else had to quit and I became recording secretary (maybe at the first board meeting I attended). I remember a lot of discussion to write the constitution and then update it several times.

Sometime in the first 10 years of the Club, I became president. Back then, I also published the newsletter—including printing and mailing it out. Doing the newsletter taught me a lot about using word processing, importing text and pictures. We tried to start the ‘on-line’ newsletter during this time, but we weren’t sophisticated enough to ensure everyone could read the on-line version so we stuck with the printed copies.

I served again as president, starting about eight years ago. We kept previewing different events for members: agility, Canine Good Citizen test, doggy massage, obedience and many others.

Not sure when we established our Internet presence (flwheatenclub.org), but that enabled us to reach more people with great information about our wheatens and Club activities.

I’m not sure when the first ‘picnic’ was held, but I remember it was held at a park in Sarasota. This first picnic found us wearing coats since it was cold for us but not for our wheatens. I recall that Barbara O’Neill’s dog Rosie won a game of fetch—I think she was the only dog that would fetch anything!.

I also remember a dog show where the wheaten judge tried to teach Rosie’s handler how to show a dog during the actual show. Rosie was hard to show. Does anyone remember who the handler was? (Person is a Club member.) Despite Rosie’s dislike of showing, her handler and owner persevered and earned her championship.

I remember attending the first herding event in a small town north of Tampa. The sheep lost a bit of wool that day. I had Katy and Dewey entered in the herding temperament test. Dewey did OK until he realized people were watching him and then he became more interested in them than the sheep.

Starting a new club with members living throughout the entire state was difficult. It was hard to get people together for programs since we lived so far apart. But people were appreciative of having activities they could join with others and learn more about these great dogs. Members far and wide really made an effort to attend the events. Our most popular events were grooming seminars done both by local Club experts and a few nationally known groomers.

Who remembers these early dinners? A no name Italian restaurant that had really good food; a seafood restaurant on the Gulf or a river—and the manager not realizing we were having a meeting besides eating (they wanted us to leave quickly); a great dinner at the home of John and Karen Kormos, around their pool; a really crowded dinner at Bucca de Bepo; and others. It’s wonderful now to have the great country clubs that really cater to our needs and have great food.

The best part of this Club has always been the way members have worked to help each other learn to groom, to show, to train and to take care of our dogs.

How many of us have traveled to find someone to glue our new wheaten’s ears – or clean those ears? By the nature of our kind of club, many of us compete for dog show wins; compete for potential wheaten owners; and in other areas. But we have maintained cordial relationships with everyone willing to help when our friends need help.

The friendships formed are the backbone of the Club. We know there is someone we can always call for advice and encouragement or who will jump in without being asked.

Thanks for the privilege of serving as Club president, in the other offices and as a Board member. I encourage everyone to consider participating on the Board it has always been extremely rewarding and fun!

Marilyn Matthes, SCWTCGTB President, 2002-2004 and 2008-2009

Thinking back to my terms as president during 2003-2007 brings fond memories of making new friends and taking some great strides in our Club’s participation in new and novel events.

Named after Karen and John Kormos’s boy, the Murffy’s Rainy Day fund was established as a means of rapidly responding to other groups dealing with issues relating to the welfare of dogs. We assisted a 501(c)(3) rescue group in Miami after the Hurricane in 2004; D.A.R.T. a rescue group in Tampa Bay that assisted with Hurricane Katrina canine victims; and the Mauterer Veterinary Clinic in Covington, Louisiana, providing financial assistance with surgical expenses for Katrina canine victims. We also assisted other soft coated wheaten terrier rescue groups such as the one in Alabama when they were overwhelmed with a litter of pups needing rescue and veterinary care.

In 2005 we started sponsoring a Colony Dog. Our dog Renin was one of the dogs produced by a SCWT and a beagle and was called a wheagle. The Colony Dogs were the project of North Carolina State University searching for the mode of inheritance of PLE/PLN in our beloved dogs. We earned the money for sponsoring Renin through the Annual Dinner, silent auction and through the matching of earned dollars by a Club family.

Some of the fun and educational events our Club participated in during my terms as president include a Pet Massage in 2006 and Grooming Seminars in 2006 and 2007. We also did a handcrafting weekend to create items to donate for the 2006 silent auction.

We had a blast taking part in the 2005 and 2006 Venice St. Patrick’s Day parades. Unfortunately, 2006 was the last year Venice sponsored the parade, but we had fun walking with other Irish dogs among tons of floats and bands.

We celebrated our 10th anniversary at the Laurel Oak Country Club in Sarasota. I remember wondering back then where the next 10 years would take our Club and now we are here! 

Toward the end of my terms, I read about the Canine Phenome Project. It was basically a blood DNA collection in coordination with the Soft Coated Wheaten Club of America. The Board helped generate participation interest with our Club members and made sure we were working within National Club guidelines.

Our first draw was at a picnic and was a rousing success due to hard work and coordination within our Board. I was never prouder of all the cooperation given with in our Club as well as outside help to make this possible.

The purpose of the Canine Phenome Project was to establish a DNA bank with supporting data for use by researchers to identify the gene(s) responsible for canine diseases and other characteristics. For wheaten owners, participation was an opportunity to store DNA from wheatens for future use by researchers interested in finding the genetic cause(s) of PLE,
PLN, RD, Addison’s and/or other serious diseases.

In January 2005 and 2006 we sponsored a Meet the Breed booth at the Eukanuba National Championship dog shows in Tampa. The reactions of visitors were priceless. “Ohhhhh this dog is soooo soft,” “This dog just kissed me,” and, “She’s so beautiful” were heard over and over at the SCWT Meet-the-Breed booth. The SCWT Club of Greater Tampa Bay had the pleasure of coordinating the booth on behalf of SCWTCA. Our wheatens were ambassadors of goodwill as people stopped by to learn more about the breed.

One memory which really stands out was Marilyn Matthes and I walking (many blocks) from our vehicle through windy Tampa with our dogs and about 30 helium balloons. Sorry, no pictures of us on this wild walk.

Gayle Frank, SCWTCGTB President, 2003-2007

How quickly the years pass. In the first line I wrote in my inaugural “President’s Message” read, “There is no “I” in wheaten….” this philosophy is something that I see our Club members live up to time and time again.

From 2012 through 2015 we have hosted an annual Education Day, which became WOW – Wonderful World of Wheatens. Topics have included wheaten health, CPR and first aid, getting to know our wheatens, basic grooming, Canine Good Citizen testing and Therapy Dog International testing.

Our Annual West Coast Picnic remains a well-attended event, although the East Coast picnic was cancelled due to lack of participation. We hosted a Herding Day and Agility Day. Both were very well received. Our Club came together and hosted two “B” Matches and two “A” Matches, working towards the next steps in becoming an AKC licensed club. Approximately 150 rescue dogs were transported, treated and re-homed over the past four years through our SCWTCGB Rescue Yes, a little something for everyone.

We have hosted Meet the Breed at the AKC Eukanuba National Championship in Orlando for the past Four years on behalf of our National Club, SCWTCA. We received nothing but positive comments and many thanks for all our wheatens and their owners who have made this a success. Many of our Club member dogs have placed at this prestigious event every year and hopefully will again this year. In 2015, half of the TOP 10 dogs in the Owner Handler competition were owned by Club members.

Our Club has beautiful posters for use at events featuring member dogs. Our members supported a 2014 Calendar also featuring Club dogs. What great fundraisers! We created brochures for general use in addition to our rescue brochures.

From 2012-15 we participated in the “Swab and Send” program – sending DNA sample to Penn State. What a breakthrough when mutations in two genes were identified in wheatens with PLN. Sadly, we lost Renin – our Colony dog 10-18-96 to 07-23-12. He was part of the PLN/PLE study at NC State University.

In 2014 and 2015 we have participated in “Supported Entry” for the Tampa Bay Terrier Club and St. Petersburg Dog Fanciers Association. Beautiful rosettes were presented to the top-placing wheaten terriers.

SCWTCA announced that it would be holding its 2018 Roving Specialty in conjunction with the Brooksville dog shows. This is a great honor and is the first time we have had a specialty in Florida. It would never have happened without the support of our Club members.

The constant theme has been we are a breed club, not a rescue club, not a performance club, not a conformation club. Our focus is our wonderful breed and everything it encompasses. I hope members feel we have offered something for everyone. I am sure the incoming Board will be welcoming of suggestions for future events and activities that would be of interest to our membership. It has taken so many people to make the past four years a success and we have accomplished a lot. Thank you to everyone who has worked to make all these efforts a success.

It has been an honor to be President and work with so many fine people. To think we have grown from a small group of owner/exhibitors in 1995 to 143 members in 2015 is a testament to everyone’s commitment and dedication.

Kathi Elliot, SCWTCGTB President, 2012-2015

I was honored to serve as your president from the winter of 2016 to the spring of 2019. I served two terms, in three years rather than four. This was due to transitioning our board to groupings of two classes that now turn over in alternate years, giving continuity to the Board from year to year. That was one of the governance changes made in 2016 when we updated our constitution and bylaws.

We researched and corrected inconsistencies both within the document itself, and between the document and common practice over many years. We also adjusted in language to comply with Florida legal requirements governing non-profit organizations. I was so happy to meet many of you when we brought the proposed changes to you at membership meetings around the state, and you voted to approve them at the fall general membership meeting that year.

Our bylaws have always provided for Standing Rules, but no such document could be found. Over the course of my administration, I kept track of the questions that arose concerning past practice, actions of prior boards and current requirements. As Past President in 2019 I created, with my successor, a draft document from the researched answers to those questions. The draft eventually became our board approved Standing Rules that can be found today with the bylaws on our website.

I noticed that since the passing of Renin, the dog we supported in Dr. Vaden’s PLN research colony, contributions had accumulated in our health fund. Since we do not have a committee dedicated to researching and vetting appropriate projects for canine health research, the board voted to send accumulated funds, in $1000 increments, to the SCWTCA Endowment Inc., where it can be invested for growth, and used to support research relating to wheaten health.

This funding process does not preclude our using funds for a specific health project or request but assures that the money donated is actively supporting the intended purpose. I am pleased and gratified that the current administration has continued this practice.

The SCWTCA Endowment, Inc., was established in 2001 by the Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier Club of America, Inc. (SCWTCA), for the purpose of supporting research related to the health of the soft coated wheaten terrier.

Our Club is all about soft coated terriers, and the many activities we enjoy doing with our treasured pets. At one or another of these events I enjoyed meeting so many of you. The Annual Picnic, whether it’s held in spring or fall, usually has a large turnout of rescued wheatens and their families. What a great day to get together and meet more of you! Rain or shine, I always have a good time. I think there have been Halloween, Mardi Gras, Valentine, and St Patrick’s costume contests, agility and nose-work demonstrations, always great food, and companionship. The same can be said for the Annual Dinner where the Silent Auction has traditionally raised funds to support our Rescue mission and activities.

Our Wonderful World of Wheatens Education Day brings together yet another group of members and their dogs for a day of learning new skills. The Grooming Seminars are where members and professional groomers gather and learn to hand scissor their dogs. Some members brought or sent their groomers to learn the proper trim from a credentialed Master Groomer.

And finally, conformation; the Supported Entries where we encourage participation in an AKC dog show and provide prizes to the winners, and hosting the SCWTCA Roving Specialty, the first time it was held away from California. Thank you for the privilege of serving as your President.

Ann McCormick, SCWTCGTB President, 2016-2019

My introduction to the wheaten world started 12 years ago when my husband and I got our first wheaten, Scout. We were fortunate enough to find one of Scout’s littermates right up the road in Tampa. It’s a small world considering they both were from a small town in North Carolina. As a result, we were introduced to our first SCWTC Annual Picnic and have only missed one since. We caught “wheaten fever” and started going to more events put on by the Club.

Five years ago, we volunteered to man the booth at Meet the Breed in Orlando. While there, I began talking to Lois Hiers. She happened to mention she was about to step into the role of treasurer. I told her I had received a call about joining the Board as corresponding secretary but declined the offer because as an accountant the role of treasurer was much more suiting to me. Lois, without hesitation, said she would be happy to allow me to take on the Treasurer position, and so it began.

During my first year as treasurer, I recommended we set up a profile on the Giving Partner. The Giving Partner is an online tool published by the Community Foundation of Sarasota County to encourage donors, foundations, businesses, and media partners to make informed choices about their giving. The main reason for this was to allow us to participate in the Giving Challenge.

The Giving Challenge is a 24-hour fundraising event that often provides matching funds from The Patterson Foundation. To say the least, I had no idea what I was getting myself into.

I spent countless hours putting the historical data into financial statement format. Ann McCormick was a sport and helped complete sections of the profile of which I had no knowledge. This was a lot of work for both of us and I am ever so grateful to Ann for putting in the time to make this happen.

Anyone who knows Kathi Elliot knows how very persuasive she can be. Kathi approached me at Education Day to discuss the fact the Ann McCormick’s term would be ending and the Club needed to find a new president. I do not know how she did it but here I am. The position has been a lot of hard work, but I wouldn’t trade a minute of it. After-all, the Club is for the dogs who have no voice.

Part of my hesitation regarding the president position was the required quarterly newsletter President’s message. I have never enjoyed, nor have been good at writing.

When I first started on the Board, I heard the need for Standing Rules. I soon realized why this was so important. Many changes have occurred over the years and having a guide and an understanding of what and why is extremely helpful. So, earlier this year, I compiled the Club’s first ever Standing Rules. Thank you to all who contributed content. This role has challenged me in an area that does not come to me naturally and has helped me grow as an individual.

One of the most rewarding parts of serving on the board has been getting to know the members and making lifetime friendships. It has been an honor and a privilege to have served for the past two years as the Club’s President and I look forward to the upcoming two years.

Cindy Jacuk, SCWTCGTB President, 2019-2020