she belonged but to pursue what she truly loved — judging.
Always eager to learn more, even about breeds for which she
was already approved, she could be found on most weekends
when she was not actually involved with a dog show sitting at
ringside to observe a large variety of breeds.
Starting out in Terriers (Westies), Kathy and her husband
expanded their canine horizons with a variety of dogs, including Dobermans and a Boston Terrier. In spite of having to
board their dogs while they traveled for their judging assignments, they were never without a canine household member.
Kathy Grosso not only loved what she did, but she was an
outspoken advocate for the purebred dog community. Some
may have found her overly eager to express her feelings, but
she knew what she was talking about and truly believed in it.
Those who knew her well loved her for it.
Never one to give anything up gracefully, Kathy eventually
lost her lengthy fight with cancer. Her passing is a huge loss
to her family, her Kennel Club of Palm Springs family and to
the entire world of purebred dogs.
Barbara
Keenan
Barbara Keenan
MAY 9, 1935 - JULY 8, 2016
BY DAN SAYERS
“T
he Westie World Lost a Breed Icon,” proclaims a
full-page ad in this year’s Montgomery County Kennel Club catalog. That icon was Barbara Keenan,
multi-Group judge and matron of Wishing Well Kennels who
passed from this world this past July. A lifetime member of
the West Highland White Terrier Club of America, Barbara’s
devotion to the breed — and to the dog sport — made a lasting impact on many fanciers who knew and loved her. As
stated in the ad, “Barbara credited many renowned people
with mentoring her over the years, but there is no question
that mentoring was in her blood as well.”
“I was lucky enough to be born into a dog show household,” says daughter Patty, who judged several breeds at
Montgomery this year as well as Junior Showmanship and
the Bred-by-Exhibitor Terrier Group. Patty and Barbara had
attended the fall classic together ever since the show was first
held at Temple University’s campus in Ambler, Pa. The year
was 1972, and Barbara’s youngest daughter was barely old
enough to walk, much less show a dog. “I think I was 2 years
old,” Patty says of her Montgomery baptism. For more than 40
years, the ladies anticipated their return to this one-day show.
Barbara and her mother had Scottish Terriers before
purchasing their first Westie from Mrs. John Winant’s
Edgerstoune Kennels in Concord, N.H. Edgerstoune Cindy went home with the ladies and was ultimately made a
champion. She produced three champions of her own, in-
cluding the foundation of Wishing Well Kennels, Ch. Wishing Well’s Belinda CD.
“We then went to England and purchased Eng. Ch. Cruben Dextor [Group Third at the 1953 Morris & Essex show
with Barbara handling] and his mother, Am. Can. Ch. Cruben
Melphis Chloe, and became good friends with Dr. and Mrs.
Russell and their handler Len Pearson,” noted Barbara. She
credited Mr. Pearson as her most important mentor for finding
so many good Westies for her. “Among these was Ch. Symmetra Snip, Best in Show at Montgomery County, 1960; Ch.
Pinmoney Puck, Best in Show at Eastern Dog Club [1973]; and
Ch. Elfinbrook Simon, Best in Show at Westminster 1962, plus
many other Best in Show winners.”
“I still can’t believe it happened to me,” Barbara told New
York Times feature writer Pat Gleeson of her Westie’s Westminster win. “I still have to check my scrapbook to prove
it. Simon’s victory was a complete surprise.” In the paper’s
February 12, 1978 edition, Barbara shared that her little dog’s
triumph at Madison Square Garden had very nearly been
thwarted. “George Ward, my handler, didn’t want to come to
New York that year, but rather than let me show Simon, he
came and won the show and was glad he did.”
Barbara eventually added AKC judge to her résumé, and
DECEMBER 2016
DOGS IN REVIEW
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