January 30, 2000-April 27, 2003

On April 27, 2003 Clara was struck and killed by a motorcycle.  She died instantly and felt no pain.  In her three and a half years of life she was good at anything she was asked to do but not necessarily the best at anything, except love. 

Every human being was her friend and every dog was to be played with.  Even dog aggressive dogs made friends with Clara.  She will be missed for the rest of this handler's life.  When all else failed, Clara's love could be depended on to be there.  Other partners will come and go, but Clara touched my soul.  We spread her ashes on her favorite training grounds by candle light and remembered her. 

To paraphrase John Denver's "Michael"
Joy was a thing that she was raised on,
Love was just a way to live and die,
Gold was just a field to play in,
and blue was just a cloudless summer sky.

Rest in peace sweet Clara, you leave a hole in my heart.

Sherri Gallagher