Houston Lifestyles and Homes Magazine Jan 2010: A Sea of Golden Retrievers

By Jennifer McClenin-Moody

Every year, Golden Beginnings Golden Retriever Rescue celebrates its anniversary with a huge picnic. This year ’s picnic was held at George Bush Park. There were golden retrievers as far as the eye could see. They didn ’t stand still long enough to get an official count, but the estimate is about 200.

GB marked its 10-year anniversary in 2010. Over the past decade this organization has rescued, healed, loved and re-homed more than 2,000 golden retrievers. In the animal rescue world, 10 years is a great accomplishment, and 2,000 rescues is an impressive number.

Responsible for this great success is a group of tireless volunteers who donate their time, and their hearts, to this organization. GB ’s volunteers live all over Houston, Katy, Sugar Land, Kingwood, Pearland and in just about all of the surrounding cities, and come together at least once a month to raise awareness, and funds to continue its efforts. They host fundraising events such as wine tastings and book signings, and have monthly Meet & Greets/Adoption Days.

A Great Day for a Picnic

The Annual Picnic is GB’s second largest fundraiser of the year. Guests participated in raffles, purchased Christmas ornaments and other handmade crafts made by very talented volunteers, and spent the day with friends, old and new. In addition to the many volunteers (and their pups), picnic guests included the families who have adopted goldens over the years. As you walked around and met people, you heard one success story after the next. Littermates and former foster sibling-pups found each other and tails would wag in delight. And if you ’re a foster parent, there’s a good chance you ran into a former foster dog, who quickly recognized you no matter how long it has been.

It wouldn’t be a proper golden retriever picnic without a swimming hole, and the pond behind the pavilions worked just fine for these guys. Armed with dozens of tennis balls, the humans kept a few dozen vigorous goldens busy for quite some time.

The highlight of the day was the Senior Parade, where golden seniors (with the sugar-faces … you know the ones) get their two minutes of fame walking past the cheering crowd while their story is told by the emcee. These seniors enjoyed free grooming prior to their walk to stardom, thanks to GB volunteer Ann McGuire. Golden Beginnings was thrilled to have 40 golden-oldies in this year ’s Senior Parade.

Golden Beginnings was blessed to have the help of many Red Cross volunteers at this year ’s picnic. These kids came out and manned booths, organized the parade, and helped in so many ways to make the day a big success. Some could be found taking a golden-hug break. Since golden retrievers don ’t think there’s any such thing as too much attention, this worked out well for everyone. GB appreciatees all of its supporters including Chris Mannery, proprietor of Bayou City Seafood, whose love for goldens (he has five) is at the heart of his endless support of GB ’s fundraisers throughout the years.

GB’s Presence in Katy

George Bush Park isn’t the only place in the Katy area where you can experience a gold-rush. Thanks to the many GB volunteers who live in Katy, Golden Beginnings participates in Katy ’s annual Rice Harvest parade and has won first place in the nonprofit category two years in a row. This past

year, GB’s float had 20 golden retrievers—and boy did they work the crowd!

There will be an opportunity to meet lots of goldens (and the humans who love them) in Katy in February. GB will hold a Volunteer Open House/Adoption Day on Saturday, Feb. 13, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Animal Tales, 23930 Westheimer Parkway, west of 99. Come on out and say hello.

To Learn More

Golden Beginnings rescued more than 200 goldens in 2010 alone. There are currently 40 golden retrievers, from pups to seniors, available for adoption. Sadly, with the current economy, there are more and more showing up in shelters. GB ’s work is never done. To learn more about Golden Beginnings Golden Retriever Rescue, visit www.gbgrr.org or join the group on Facebook.l