In loving memory

In loving memory:

MacAlder J’Amethyst Royale (Storm)

(Am/Can Ch. Bartay’s Tobe Cont’d For Shojin, CD, JH x Ch. MacAlder Autumn Bittersweet)

September 18, 1991 to April 27, 2005
13 years, 7 months and 9 days

The absolute hardest thing about owning a Gordon Setter, is saying good-bye to that Gordon Setter. In the past 4 years, I have had to say good-bye to 3 of my best oldsters, Trouble, Kiggan and now, my Storm. She is, without a doubt, the reason why Amethyst Gordon Setters are what they are today. Even though she never became a champion, she was a champion in the whelping box and in my heart.

She was the puppy that came to me and Greg DaValt from Tom and Deb Olson, of MacAlder Kennels. I saw the ad in the July, 1991 GSCA Newsletter where Tom and Deb announced the litter and I was instantly in awe of Bitsy. I already knew Toby, but I never saw Bitsy, except in that ad. Bitsy was an absolutely stunning girl. I wanted a girl just like her. Deb gave me a choice between gold collar girl and green collar girl and I chose green. On a November day in 1991, I drove from my new job at the UW-Madison to the airport in Madison to pick her up. She was so sweet, but absolutely did NOT want to come out of her crate. After a bit of coaxing, she decided it was okay to come out. She promptly became a permanent fixture in Greg’s shop. At the time when she came to live with us, our lives were changing...and she was part of that change. Greg became a piano tuner/technician and I became a State of Wisconsin employee. Also, friends, Margaret and Roy Travis came on as co-owners of Storm with us.

When Storm was about a year old, another Gordon Setter puppy (a Spice grandson) came to live with us. His name is Ch. Amethyst’s Music o’ the Night (Thunder). It was Thunder who became Storm’s best bud, despite what Storm put him through *grin.* Thunder was almost like the devil himself dressed in a black and tan Gordon suit. He’d rather hang himself on the grooming table than pay attention to me. I remember Anne Rogers Clark at the 1993 GSCA National asking me how old he was. I replied, “He’s 8 months old.” She said “Don’t worry honey, his wires will attach.”

Storm helped with that connection process. Greg and I had such a problem getting Thunder to behave, that Greg decided to stick Storm out in the kennel with Thunder and he returned to his shop…..about 10 minutes later he heard this absolutely horrific noise that sounded like a pig squealing…..

You guessed it. The pig was Thunder. Storm had nailed him to the ground and had him in a head/neck lock. Thank you, Storm!! Never again, did Thunder give us a lick of trouble. The two of them became inseparable. And now, with Storm gone, Thunder is the patriarch of Amethyst Gordon Setters.

Storm went to dog shows, and earned two points, but she made it clear that wasn’t her cup of tea.

She found her strength in the whelping box. Storm had been bred to Amethyst's Bit o' Power (Tubby), Ch. Glen Oaks' Firedance o' Amethyst (Fire) and Ch. Glen Oak's Maltese Falcon, CD, MH (Hawk).

Tubby -
Amethyst's Jewel of Syringa, CD (Jewel)

Fire -
Trial by Fire o' Amethyst, CGC (Ice) - pointed
Amethyst's Firelight o' Life (Ember) -pointed

Ice has produced a couple champions out of Am/Can/Mex Ch. MacAlder Best For Shojin (Chipper) including Ch. Amethyst's Stormin' Back 'n Time (Twister) and Ch. Amethyst's Black In Time (Coal). Two others are being shown - Amethyst's Blast from the Past (Griff) and Shojin's You Don't Know Jack (Sloan)- pointed.

Out of Hawk, Ice has a son, Amethyst's Fire of MacKenna major pointed and needing 3 points to finish his championship.

Ember has produced a couple champions out of Amethyst's Black and Basic Jazz (Basie) who was a Knight x Spice son. Those boys are Ch. Amethyst's Jazzy Aidan, JH, CGC, TDI (Aidan) and Ch. Amethyst's Wager With the Wind (Casey)

Hawk -
Amethyst's Aberlour o' Autumn (Abby) - pointed
Amethyst's Shania of Santa Rosa

Abby has a son, Amethyst's Dugan From Down Under (out of Ch. Triseter Ebonie Nirvana) who is major-pointed and a daughter, Brynadda VB Madeline who has a couple of reserves to her credit in very limited showing. Abby currently has a litter of babies out of Ch. MacAlder Ace of Diamonds.

Shania has a daughter, Keystone River City Sapphire who is a specialty winning bitch and is out of Ch. Springset Darn Yankee, CD, JH.

In May of 2005, Storm’s great-grandbabies will be born out of Ch. MacAlder Ace of Diamonds to a Shojin’s Somewhere in Time (Dude) x Trial by Fire o’ Amethyst (Ice) daughter, Amethyst Amber Drambuie (Amber).

On Wednesday, April 27, 2005, I made the decision to let Storm go to the Bridge. It was a decision that I didn’t make easily, but I wanted to let this lovely girl go with the dignity grace and pride that she so deserved. I will never be without her presence here. She is everywhere I look. I know she will be for many, many years to come.

Thank you, Tom and Deb, for letting Storm come to solidify my breeding program and to be so loved. Thank you to Margaret and Roy for sharing Storm’s life with me. Thanks to Greg DaValt who was Storm’s buddy and caretaker for most of her 13 years.

As has become my tradition when I lose a Gordon, I reflect on a popular country-western song to summarize my feelings. Diamond Rio had a song entitled, “I Believe” that was on their CD a couple years ago, along with one called, “One More Day.”

Do I believe? You bet I do.

Thank you, Storm, for being a part of my life.

My dearest Storm Cloud, in your honor, a red geranium will be planted on your grave. The flower is actually from the beautiful red geraniums made famous at the 2000 GSCA National held in Minnesota that I have kept alive all this time. Everytime I see a red geranium, I will think of the life and love you shared with me throughout these past 13 years.

Sleep warm, sweet girl. I will miss you, but I believe that you will always be with me. I love you, Storm.

“I Believe” - Skip Ewing/Donny Kees (Diamond Rio)

Every now and then soft as breath upon my skin
I feel you come back again
And it’s like you haven’t been gone a moment from my side
Like the tears were never cried
Like the hands of time are holding you and me
And with all my heart I’m sure we’re closer than we ever were
I don’t have to hear or see, I’ve got all the proof I need
There are more than angels watching over me
I believe, Oh I believe

Chorus
Now when you die your life goes on
It doesn’t end here when you’re gone
Every soul is filled with light
It never ends and if I’m right
Our love can even reach across eternity
I believe, Oh I believe

Forever, you’re a part of me
Forever, in the heart of me
I will hold you even longer if I can
Oh the people who don’t see the most
See that I believe in ghosts
And if that makes me crazy, then I am
‘Cause I believe
Oh I believe

There are more than angels watching over me
I believe, Oh I believe

Every now and then soft as breath upon my skin
I feel you come back again
And I believe

Storm as a puppy....
	Storm at one of the few shows I took her to.
Storm winning one of her two points.
	This is one of the last photos of Storm. Sleep well, my dolly princess.

Peggy, Thunder, Fire, Ice, Dude (visiting), Asti, Coal (visiting) and Twister

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This page was last updated on: Thursday, April 28, 2005