In the summer of 1972, Dana Yensen and Maureen Metzger discussed the increased interest in shelties in our area. They obtained a list of sheltie owners in and around Tucson, called and sounded them out on their feelings concerning organizing a Sheltie club. Interest was high so they called a meeting for October 1972. Several people attended and a board of directors was elected. The club was named Tucson Sheltie Fanciers.

The first fun match, held in July of 1973, attracted 29 shelties and 14 obedience entries. Several more matches followed. By 1975 we felt that the club was stable enough to pursue sanctioning by AKC. However, upon applying for a "B" match, we discovered that the AKC did not recognize us as a club. Unwittingly, we had neglected to make them aware of our existence and we would have to start from scratch and submit progress reports to them periodically. At this time we were instructed to submit four names to AKC, from which "Shetland Sheepdog Club of Greater Tucson" was accepted.

Finally, in August of 1976, the AKC gave the club permission to hold sanction "B" matches. In the summer of 1978 the club became incorporated. We also requested permission to hold an "A" match. Information from this point on is sketchy, but we must have had a rocky time because the records show that our first licensed show was held in March of 1982. I do recall that our membership fluctuated quite a bit due to the fact that many of our early members were military.

The rest is history. We have held two shows a year, staffed by a small but dedicated membership Since November of 1993, we have held back-to-back shows with Mid Arizona Shetland Sheepdog Club, which is based in the greater Phoenix area. We host the March show in Tucson and MASSC hosts the November show in their area. This has proven to be very successful, in effect causing each club to do the work of putting on a show only once a year. It has also created closer ties with our sister club, producing friendships and a feeling of cooperation.

In 1998, we soared to the heights ! We were privileged to host the ASSA National Specialty ! Never in our wildest dreams, back in those early days, would we ever have conceived of such an awesome honor and responsibility. But we did it. And we are proud. We are the

SHETLAND SHEEPDOG CLUB OF GREATER TUCSON, INC.!