Month: November 2022

My background is relatively broad, both in general and with dogs. I was born in Memphis, Tennessee, but my father was Air Force, so we grew up everywhere – Greece, Kansas City, Georgia, Hawaii, the Philippines, and finally Colorado. My undergraduate degree is in biology from Colorado State University and I have a law degree from the University of Colorado. I worked as a Colorado public defender doing indigent criminal defense for about 10 years. I took a three-year break during my public defender years to do civil litigation – primarily construction defect litigation and medical malpractice defense. I was appointed as a county court judge in 2007 and am still on the bench.

I rode horses growing up, competing in Pony Club, 4-H, Arabian shows, and intercollegiate competitions. When I got to law school, I no longer had access to horses and got my first dog in 1991. We started obedience out of necessity, but quickly started competitions. My first dogs were Labrador Retrievers. Over the years I did retriever hunting tests (1 Master Hunter, 2 Senior Hunters, and a bunch of JH titles), obedience, agility, rally, and tracking. I was also an AKC retriever hunt test judge.

In 2002, I found flyball. I joined the first club in Colorado, RUFF, and was secretary for our first Colorado flyball tournament in 2003. I became a flyball judge in 2005 and retired from judging in 2015. I took up photography and started shooting as Altitude Dog Photos, LLC in 2016. I primarily shoot flyball and was an official photographer for CanAm in 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2022. I currently own Altitude Flyball Club in Colorado. We actively compete in our region, host, and travel out of state for tournaments. Since 2020, I have been the Regional Director for Region 19 (Colorado, New Mexico, and Wyoming). I also compete in dock diving and am training in herding & obedience. My current dogs are Border Collies, an Australian Shepherd, and several height dog mixes.

Finally, I have some direct experience on the NAFA board. I served two terms 2007 – 2012. I was secretary all but one year. I also served as chair of the Judges Committee and Rules Committee. During my terms I helped produce the first measuring training video, produced the rulebook most of those years, transitioned NAFA to the current online election format, and was a part of the first CanAm Classic.

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Cindy Henderson has been playing flyball since 1999 as the captain of the Weston Whirlwinds who then merged with the Patriot Flyball team. Cindy is a Supervising Judge and has been judging for almost 20 years and was honored to be selected as a CanAm Head Judge four times and the CanAm Championship Judge twice and was named Judge of the Year in 2018.

Cindy served as the Regional Director for Region 13 for over 10 years, became a member of the NAFA Board of Directors in 2020 and has served on the Communication Committee, Judges Committee, Finance Committee and is currently the Treasurer. She is dedicated to helping grow the sport of flyball through initiatives such as the partnership with AKC/ESPN, local demonstrations and education of individuals on the sport, and increased marketing efforts.

Flyball is a sport for everyone, and every dog and Cindy is passionate about making it available to all breeds and a sport for teams at all levels to have fun with their dogs and friends. As flyball moves into the future Cindy would like to see NAFA continue to look for ways to improve and advance the sport forward for everyone. Critical to moving the sport forward will be advances in technology, being fiscally responsible, and finding ways to bring new teams and individuals to the sport of flyball.

Cindy currently has 3 dogs, an 8 year old and a 3 year old Border Collie both of whom are currently playing flyball and retired from the sport a 14 year old North American Shephard.

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Hello everyone! My name is Emily Neal and I’m running for the Board of Directors. I got started in flyball with my mix breed Blanche in 2011. You may remember me as “the one with the greyhound”, as I ran my greyhound Mordecai for several years as well. I have played all over the East Coast and Midwest and made invaluable friends who are now more like family. My husband Bryan Roper is also involved in flyball and you may know him as a judge. 

Personally, I have an undergraduate degree in legal studies and master’s degrees in urban planning and public administration. I have extensive work experience in non-profits and deep knowledge of non-profit leadership and administration. I’ve worked in communal services, animal rescue, and currently in historic preservation. 

I started playing flyball in Region 9, but Region 15 has been my home region since 2013. I feel fortunate that I am able to straddle 2 regions, as it allows me to get to know a wide variety of clubs and hear many different thoughts and feelings about flyball and its future. I teach flyball classes in Richmond, VA and am a passionate advocate for the sport — everyone who has ever met me now knows about flyball! My mix Blanche recently retired, and I am working hard to get my rescue beagle Tannis up and running. 

I look forward to serving the flyball community on the Board and am excited to answer your questions for you to get to know me better! 

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My name is Jackie Alcott, and I currently live with my husband and our pack of pups just outside of Charlotte, NC. Originally from “The First State,” Delaware, I’ve found a home in Region 9 where I first discovered and fell in love with Flyball.

My first real attempt at getting into Flyball was just over a decade ago. We had adopted a shelter dog who was sweet but fearful. VERY fearful. I was searching for ways to gain her trust and to build her confidence in the world around her. We decided to give Flyball a shot. We attended a few introductory classes with Turbo Paws and something clicked. I saw that sweet but fearful shelter dog turn into a confident competitor. Flash forward ten years and Nan is now an Iron Dog. Needless to say, we were hooked on Flyball.

What I learned over those first few years, and what I feel is the true “spirit” of Flyball, is that this sport is for everyone. Human and Canine, all are welcome, and all can benefit in so many ways.

Eventually, my competitive nature led me to co-found my own Club, Bitches Be Crazy. For the past several years we have been growing and improving as a club. My experiences with owning a club and captaining multiple teams has helped me to further learn the ins and outs of the Flyball world, and to appreciate the importance of organizations like NAFA.

Outside of Flyball, my background is in Special Education. I hold a Masters Degree in Special Education and Exceptional Children, with a strong focus on Applied Behavioral Analysis. I spent several years teaching students on the Autism Spectrum at the Delaware Autism Program. I led a multidisciplinary team of professionals, creating and implementing individualized education plans for our students and executing those throughout the school year. While my experience with applied behavioral analysis and teaching has translated very well to the world of dog-training and dog-sports, I’m hoping that my leadership experience can translate just as well.

I’m a forward thinking individual who believes in positive change. I’m passionate about Flyball, and hope the sport continues to grow and evolve for the better. I hope to be part of that continued growth and evolution.

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My name is Jonathan Bescher and I live in North Carolina with my wife and daughter. I have been involved with Flyball since 2002. I became an approved judge in 2009, and a supervising judge in 2017. In 2020, I was elected to the Board of Directors, and I am finishing up my first term. I my first term as a board member, I was nominated to be the Chair of the Judges committee. I have also been a member of the Rules committee.

In 2017 I won Judge of the Year, and also won the Josh Beissel award. I have judged in many different regions, along with being a Head Judge at CanAm in 2012 and 2015. Since 2017 I have been the judging coordinator at CanAm. Since 2014 I have taken on the task of being the CanAm Gift Basket Coordinator. I have also judged at the first AKC Flyball Dog Challenge held in Concord, NC. I was on the selection committee for the 2020 FCI World Championships, and am now on the selection committee for the 2023 AKC Flyball Dog Challenge.

My wife and daughter both participate in Flyball, and we will travel to as many tournaments as we can. We have 3 dogs that currently play. My wife runs 2 of them with my daughter running our oldest Border Collie.

Outside of Flyball, I own my own software business, specializing in Point of Sale software and services. I also am an Assistant Coach for one of our local USA Swimming clubs. This past year I was awarded from NC the Phillips 66 Volunteer of the Year award. I have been on the board of directors for my swim team for 3 years as the Vice President.

I am seeking a 2nd term on the board because I fell that I can keep contributing to the board, especially through the judges and rules committee. I would like to keep progressing the training and the relationships between the judges and the RD’s. I feel that I listen to the flyball community and that I am available willing to answer any questions that they may come up with or help in anyway I can.

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I am excited to introduce myself as a nominee for the NAFA Board of Directors director position for 2023. For those who don’t know me I am part of team Zoom! in Region 2 and a NAFA judge.

I have been involved in dogs and dog sports from a very young age, starting with dobermans and rough and smooth collies. I currently share my life with 5 dogs including a whippet, saluki, 2 miniature bull terriers and an adorable 10lb pound puppy and of course my wife Kim (captain of team Zoom!).

I have trained and competed in many different sports from obedience, rally and agility to tracking and nose work, but Flyball came into my life just over 12 years ago. It has been a blessing to find such an amazing community in dog sports.

I am recently retired from a career in public relations and marketing as the Associate Registrar, Student Recruitment at my local university, McMaster. I believe that the skills I bring to the table include leadership, change management, marketing and project development. Having served on many committees as well as being Chair of our provincial body, I am familiar with working with and leading teams of people. I have also been the President of my local dog training club for 2 full terms.

I believe strongly in giving back to a sport that has given me so much. That is the reason I decided to become a judge and why I am running for the Board. I recognize that NAFA doesn’t run on its own and takes a great deal of effort from some very dedicated volunteers. I think I bring the perspective of clubs that maybe do not aspire to be the best or the fastest, but that want to have fun with their dogs and their teammates. At the same time, I think the job of any member of the board is to represent all clubs and to learn to listen and understand their needs and balance sometimes competing ideas.

As we all come out of this pandemic (fingers crossed), we are in need of growth and rebuilding of our sport. I personally think it is an exciting time with lots of opportunities to be innovative and continue the good work that is already underway by NAFA. We can always do better.

I hope I get a chance to answer your questions and to represent you on the board.