Letter from the President

Dear Members and Friends:

Animal Fair is but a distant memory and thanks to our sponsors, vendors, our members and the community it was one of our most successful events to date. I'd like to extend a special thank you to our Gold and Silver Sponsors, without them and their continuing support we would not be able to have this successful and popular event year after year. Our Gold Sponsors were: All-Kinds Veterinary Hospital, Cole Travel/American Express, Farmstead Kennels and Indian Bridge Kennels & Suites. Our Silver Sponsors were: PNC Bank, Trails End Pet Sitting, Training by Julie and Wyle Cares.

Our King and Queen contest has become even more successful; this year our totals were almost doubled those of last year! Congratulations to our King, Yoo Hoo Whipkey, and our Queen, Skipper Carnes! Start getting your pets ready for next year's contest, we'd love to have many more participants and all are welcome to enter. For those of you who don't know, Yoo Hoo is a cat and his campaign slogan was "Cats Rule, Dogs Drool!" While his slogan was in good fun, it does go to show that it's not just a contest for dogs. Who knows, maybe we'll even have a Hedgehog enter next year's contest.

On a more serious note, we've recently had a few losses and additions to our Board. Our President, Melissa Carnes, our Treasurer, Barbara Saylor, and Board Member Jen Hunt have all resigned. While we will miss all of them and the contributions they have made to the Board and to SMAWL, we are grateful for the time they did serve and their many contributions. Rest assured, that while they no longer serve on the Board, they have all indicated that they will continue to volunteer and support SMAWL and the many good works we do for the animals of our community. I'd like to extend a very special welcome to our newest Board Members Cindy Dixon, Carolyn Armstrong and Mandie Whipkey! All three have been long-time volunteers with SMAWL and we are grateful that they have agreed to give of themselves and serve on the Board; Carolyn Armstrong will also be serving as our Treasurer.

We also have a new position on the Board, that of Immediate Past President. This will be a one-year advisory position to give the new President and Board guidance in times of transition. The corporate memory of the Immediate Past President will be invaluable as a new president takes the helm and will help make a seamless transition in leadership. I am ever so grateful that Barb Whipkey has agreed to step in and serve as Immediate Past President; I've been in the position for less than a month and her insight has been priceless. Thanks Barb!

The Board is currently in the process of doing a complete review of our By-Laws. We expect to vote on a new set of By-Laws and to fill additional open Board seats at our next General Membership Meeting in September. We hope to see you there; it will be on September 8th at 7:00 p.m. in the Conference Center at The Dorsey Law Firm in Leonardtown. The address is 22835 Washington Street, Leonardtown, Maryland 20650. Mark your calendars and plan on attending.

Even though I've been President for a short period of time, I have been a volunteer with SMAWL for many years and my family includes three wonderful dogs -- Fred, Sammy and Rudy. Sammy was a SMAWL foster that I adopted and Rudy is a SMAWL foster that I am in the process of adopting; that's one of the absolute joys of fostering! In addition, I am a partner with The Dorsey Law Firm and I have served (or am currently serving) on many other boards and commissions including, the Adult Public Guardianship Review Board, the Cable Advisory Board, the Teen Center Advisory Board, the Commission for Women, Tri-County Youth Services Bureau, METCOM and the League of Women Voters of St. Mary's County. SMAWL is by far the most active board I have served; we are out there in the community working for those who can't speak for themselves which makes the work we do some of the most gratifying and rewarding.

I am currently in the process of meeting with essential partners with SMAWL. I know it will take me a while to meet and greet with everyone but I hope to get input from all of the groups we work with to see what we can do to improve the way we work. If you'd like to set-up a meeting, see something you think we should be doing differently or if you have a suggestion, please don't hesitate to contact me; I'm open to suggestions from all fronts. My phone numbers are (301) 737-4432/home; (301) 475-5000/work; or (301) 904-0332/cell. You can also reach me via e-mail at katie.smawl@gmail.com; you can also send an e-mail to smawl@yahoo.com. I will endeavor to return phone calls and respond to e-mails within 48 hours.

One thing I have learned in working with SMAWL is that we have become an indispensable part of the community. Whether it's for the adoption of the animals in our care, providing Spay/Neuter Grants and Vouchers, running our low-cost Rabies Clinic or working with Animal Control in the Pet Food Pantry, it is my hope that we continue to provide these services and grow to meet the needs of our ever changing and growing community. With your help and input I'm sure that SMAWL will continue to provide these essential services and many others we have yet to implement well into the future.

I hope to see you on September 8th!

Katie Werner