The Beginning
This is part two of the story of how the PBC originally got off the ground. Some of you are looking at the title and thinking “The Beginning” shouldn’t this be the first article? The first article I wrote was called “Before the Beginning”. It more or less explained the need for a club in the Midwest and how that ended up being the start of an idea and the organization of the first steps. I plan here to tell you exactly how that very first “official” meeting went.
Once again I start with a disclaimer. I might very well mess up some dates and forget some names, and even get a few facts wrong, Any of these things is due to the passing of much time and the work of my old brain.
I had completed a constitution and Bi-laws for the new club I wanted to call The Prairielands Bloodhound Club. I remembered the advice I’d received from a lot of people and followed it. That was to start a club, pick a board, and let people join you. I set a Sunday afternoon in the spring and invited some people who shared my dream to that first meeting. Present at that gathering were myself and my spouse, Jack and Bettye Shuler, Kathy and Jim Breeden, and Barbara Meyer. Everyone read over the constitution and bi-laws and we discussed them thoroughly. One thing we agreed on was that for the first six months we would wave the requirement of a sponsor. We figured if there were no other members finding a sponsor would be a bit difficult. Our big push was to start at a Regional we hoped to sponsor in Urbana, IL that early summer.
Jack Shuler was just getting ready to retire from his full time job and we all thought he would have the most time available; on top of that he was willing, which is rare. Needless to say he ran and was elected President unopposed on the spot. I took on the Vice Presidency and agreed to pursue finishing up the Constitution and Bi-laws, incorporation, and tax exception. Kathy Breeden became Treasurer, and Barbara Meyer Secretary.
When we originally started up we hadn’t thought to include all of the states now considered part of the Northcentral region, that came along later. We were looking more along the lines of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Iowa. We talked about a number of possible people we thought would be good for the board, and hard working for the club. We were not terribly concerned about spreading board members throughout the Club states. Our main thought was to find good people who shared our desire to start a quality club. Karen Leshkivich was living in Iowa at the time so she was picked and later agreed to serve. Everyone who was asked was willing and enthusiastic. The following people served on that first board, some are still members today:
Frank Gavlick—St. Louis area
Jean Hender--- Peoria, Illinois
Jack Larson--- Chicago, Illinois area
Tammy Lazwell--- Vandalia, Illinois
After these initial, rather simple decisions were made we revised and settled on dues, membership applications and other things. We knew the regional would be the big push and probably our only chance to see if all this was going to fly. Kathy Breeden agreed to be the showchair; I set up a large hospitality at a very nice local motel. Now all we had to do was prepare and see what would happen at the Regional.
It ended up a resounding success. The entry was large and a lot of people signed up for the club. In those first couple of years Kathy Breeden and Barb Meyer deserve much of the credit for the success of what started out a simple project.
I’ve gone on too long with this story, so I’ll cover those initial days and months in the next article. I think I’ll call that “After the Beginning”. After that I’ll have to find different and original titles. This particular story is really not very interesting, not a real page turner. I think it just shows that a group of a few determined people can get something so complicated off the ground and started.
Once again anyone with questions, corrections, praise, or criticism please feel free to contact me. I tend to put the critical stuff on the bottom for last and I’m sure you can believe that. The club has been a success for over ten years. It’s had its ups and downs, but the people who are mentioned above deserve much credit for their tireless work and complete dedication to the bloodhound.
David de Jong